Marry Me
by makesmyheadspin
Summary: Sookie is a single mother. Eric is a single father. They think they're too busy to get in a relationship but fate seems to be determined to keep bringing them together once they meet. Be prepared for odd pairings here. I suck at writing summaries. AH
1. Swing

Alright, so I told myself I was going to wait until I was finished with this story, but I'm at 35 pages and 18k+ words and I'm not through yet. I really need to curb this nonsense, but the muses won't stfu. *pauses to hear world's tiniest violins play* So, now that we established that, I'll start posting what I have in hopes that reviews (and **scribeninja**) will compel me to quit dicking around on my music blog and finish this bitch.

There are some oddball pairings here and when I told my brainmate the basic premise of this story, she insisted it must be written. Sooo...I hope once you get past the initial "WTF, MEG?" you'll all be shouting at your screens, you'll enjoy the rest. I'm aiming for this story to go less than 10 chapters, since I seem to be all about the short stories lately. Enjoy the show, baby birds!

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: Swing<strong>

The screaming was driving Sookie crazy. Jessica had been fussy all day long and it finally boiled over into the mother of all tantrums. Usually Jess wasn't much trouble. She chattered a lot, now that she was learning to talk, but she was well behaved and did as she was told. She had inherited her father's rather sweet demeanor and her mother's temper. Usually the sweetness won out, but when Jess got into one of her snits, it was awful. Sookie suddenly felt awful for every stomp of her foot or whine she'd unleashed on her poor Gran when she was younger.

"Jess, baby, please stop screaming," Sookie begged, at her wits end.

The screaming continued.

"Fine. Until you can act like a big girl, you go in your room." Sookie carefully picked up the thrashing two and a half year old and carted her to her bedroom.

As soon as Sookie set the little girl down on her bed, she was getting up to follow her mother. Sookie hightailed it to the door and closed it quickly, leaving Jessica to scream on the other side. The sound was muffled, but it still tugged at her heart. Snuggling Jess wasn't working, nor was logic. She'd tried distracting her but that had failed, too.

She thanked her lucky stars when she heard the sound of tires crunching on gravel out front. She was still slumped on the floor in the hallway when Jason and Hoyt let themselves into the house. Her name was called out and she weakly called back, not that they could hear it over the sounds of Jessica's meltdown. Thank God it was Hoyt's weekend. She needed a break.

"Jesus, Sook, what'd you do to her?" Jason carefully opened the bedroom door and immediately bent down to pick up his niece.

"She's been at it all day," Sookie was near tears herself.

"What's the matter, baby girl?" Jason bounced the toddler in his arms and made faces at her.

He was surprisingly good with Jessica. Sookie suspected it was because Jason was nothing more than a big kid himself, even though he was pushing thirty. The second Jessica caught sight of Hoyt, her little arms flew in his direction.

"Come here, sunshine," Hoyt cuddled his daughter and she settled down.

Sookie burst into tears, which Hoyt and Jason took as their cue to give her some space. She cried for a few minutes, wondering what the hell she had done wrong. Deep down she knew it wasn't her fault but she didn't understand how Jessica could be so riled with her one minute and a sweet little angel the next. It just didn't make any sense.

She pulled herself together and found Hoyt, Jason and Jessica in the kitchen of the old farmhouse. Jess was happily drinking juice and sucking Fruit Loops off the table the same way Jason was. Hoyt pulled a slip of paper Sookie knew was his child support check from his shirt pocket. He paid her every week, and more than what the court ordered him to.

Jessica had been quite the surprise. At the age of twenty-two, Sookie had gotten stinking drunk at Merlotte's after a bad break up with her college boyfriend, Bill Compton. She lost count of the number of shots she'd taken when she surpassed the number of times she'd suspected Bill had fucked the other woman she caught him with. Even worse, she'd caught him in the bed she'd been sharing with him for the last six months.

She stormed out after calling him every nasty name she could think of, while he tried to convince her it was a one time thing. Sookie left him standing buck naked on the front porch of his house, flipping him the bird over her shoulder as she stormed to her car. She'd gone straight to Merlotte's and started drinking. She drank, flirted, drank, danced, flirted, drank and danced some more until Sam cut her off and Hoyt, her brother's best friend, offered to drive her home.

What happened after that was a bit of a blur, but nine months later Jessica was born. She vaguely remembered putting the moves on Hoyt, even though he tried to talk her out of it. The sex had been ho-hum, in her drunken opinion, but it was enough for her to get a little revenge on Bill for what he'd done. It was also a legitimate one time thing. They didn't try to start a relationship. They were friends. Now they were parents.

They did their best to get along and put the baby first. They had easily come to a custody agreement that worked for both of them. For the most part, it wasn't a bad deal. It got stressful sometimes, and Jason was the one who had the most trouble accepting the whole thing. He changed his tune right quick when Jessica was born, though.

"So, Sook, what'cha doing this weekend?" Hoyt asked while Sookie poured herself a glass of iced tea.

"After the day I've had? I'm going out. I don't care where, I just don't want to look at these walls any longer than I have to." Sookie considered putting a shot of whatever liquor she had under the sink in her tea but decided not to. "I'll call Amelia and see what she's up to."

"Uh oh." The boys chorused.

"What?" Sookie glared at each of them but it was Jason who leaned closer to Jessica.

"Mommy wants to get laid tonight," Jason said in a very childish voice that had Hoyt laughing and Sookie throwing a dish towel at him.

"Jason Stackhouse!" She admonished in her scary mama's voice.

"Face it, Sook, you call Amelia when you have an itch that needs scratching." Jason shrugged and then ate the piece of cereal Jessica offered him.

"So what if I do? It's not like I'm seeing anyone," she said defensively.

"I don't think he was judging you, Sookie, just teasing." Hoyt smiled kindly at her.

"Well what are _you_ doing this weekend?" Sookie asked.

"Holly and I are taking the kids to the zoo if the weather's nice enough." Hoyt tickled Jessica's neck and she squealed and squirmed in her little booster seat.

It was disgusting how in love with her father she was. There were daddy's girls, and then there was Jessica. With just a fraction of a pout she could get anything she wanted from him and she darn well knew it. Hoyt was wrapped around her little finger and didn't care. Not that it took much to tame Hoyt, but anything wild in him had settled when Jessica came into the world.

"How's things with Holly these days?" Sookie kissed Jessica's head then went out to the porch to collect the clean clothes in the dryer. The sky had been threatening rain, forcing her to use the machine instead of hanging things on the line like she usually did.

"Pretty good. Cody's warming up to me a little better. I think he was worried I was gonna leave like his daddy did." Hoyt shrugged. It was as an astute observation as a guy like Hoyt ever made. He was also, most likely, right on the money.

"I'm glad to hear that's getting better," Sookie smiled while she folded a bunch of Jessica's clothes.

Truthfully, it was a shame she didn't feel the same attraction to Hoyt when she was sober as she did when she was drunk. He was simple in a lot of ways, but he was sweet, devoted and a good man. He took excellent care of Jessica and any time Sookie needed him, he was there. As far as baby daddies went, she could have done a lot worse than Hoyt Fortenberry.

They three of them sat around the kitchen shooting the bull until Jess got bored and decided it was time to go. Sookie handed over the bag she'd packed for Jessica and kissed her daughter goodbye before handing her over to Hoyt for the next week. They alternated weeks and holidays with her, trying to keep things as fair and even as possible. Since they lived in the same small town, it was easy enough to do.

The biggest problem they had was Hoyt's mother. She was great with Jessica, but she didn't approve of the fact that Jess had been born out of wedlock. Every chance she got, she was flapping her gums about the two of them coming to their senses and getting married. No one seemed to think of Jessica as a bastard child except for Maxine, although she never voiced that opinion in the range of Jessica's hearing. More than once, Sookie and Maxine had gotten into it, and it wasn't until Hoyt intervened and threatened not to let her have anything to do with Jessica that Maxine backed down.

Sookie waved from the porch as they drove away, then went back in the house to make her phone calls. It was time to forget the day she'd had.

The bar was crowded but it was Friday night so it wasn't surprising. Calling Amelia was like sounding the alarm and just about every girl Sookie knew showed up at her house for a round of drinks before they piled into two cars and headed out for the night. Merlotte's wasn't an option since the place would be crawling with the same old rednecks that were always there, and it was no fun to get silly drunk with the girls when someone's boyfriend might walk in at any moment.

They ended up at a place called Hooligan's over in Ruston. It was owned by a friend of Amelia's and she'd promised to reserve a few tables for them. Sookie was wearing a dress that would have scandalized her Gran if she'd seen her in it. It was a black halter dress with sequins all over it. Her year round tan looked deeper than usual and she was wearing heels guaranteed to make her feet hurt for days.

Sookie definitely didn't look like the mother of a two-year-old, nor was she acting like one. She was careful about how much a she drank, even though she wasn't the designated driver for the evening. Sookie didn't want a repeat of three years ago. One kid was enough, for the moment, and she didn't need to add another random baby daddy to her list.

All the same, she slurped her gin and tonic between dances. The girls stayed pretty close together. Just about everyone was attached but Sookie. Amelia was dating Tray. Tara was engaged to JB. Claudine and Colman had been married for six months. Maria-Star had just started seeing Alcide. Sookie was the only completely single girl in the bunch, but it was by choice. At least, that's what she told herself.

She had enough on her plate at the moment. Between work, taking care of Jess and keeping her house in order, there wasn't much time for dating. She'd gone out with a few guys, but it never amounted to very much when they realized her kid was going to come first. That meant cutting dates short when Jessica got sick or working extra hours when Sookie could to make sure her bank account was nicely padded. Hoyt definitely did his part to lessen the burden, but she was trying to stash away as much money as she could for Jessica to go to college one day.

Sookie had different priorities than most of her friends for that reason. She didn't get out much, so when she did, they sort of let her get wild. Amelia was a particularly good watch dog and shooed away more than one guy who got a little too handsy. The five of them were doing their thing out on the dance floor when Maria tapped Sookie on my shoulder.

"You've got an admirer, I think," she shouted in Sookie's ear over the Black Eyed Peas.

"Really? Where?" Sookie laughed.

"Two o'clock. Tall, black jeans, blond hair and _very_ fuckable. If I weren't going to ravage Alcide when I get home, I'd definitely be trying to climb that guy." Maria bit her bottom lip.

Sookie spun around and put a little extra pop in the sway of her hips before glancing over her shoulder to get a peek at the guy Maria claimed was watching her. She wasn't kidding when she said he was fuckable. But then Sookie was standing in a cluster of beautiful women. He could have been looking at any one of them so she figured she'd test it out.

"I need water. I'll be right back," Sookie winked at Maria and walked off the dance floor.

It was amazing what generous amounts of cleavage could do, and Sookie certainly had plenty to spare. She got her bottle of water along with the phone number of a guy she never in a million years would call. Even the lovely haze of a few cocktails couldn't make him appealing. It was highly unlikely her mind would change when she was sober. She thanked him for the water anyway and dropped his number on the floor as she pushed her way through the crowd to get back to their table.

The girls were still on the dance floor. Sookie's eyes moved around the bar in search of the tall man that had been looking her way a while before but he was gone. She uncapped the bottle and took a long drink before capping it again. It was warm in the bar on account of all the bodies crammed into the relatively small space. Tara waved from the dance floor and Sookie waved back.

She had just about given up on the blond man ever finding her when she was tapped on the shoulder. Sookie turned to see who had touched her. It wasn't the blond man, but a bald guy about the same height and build. Sookie gulped at his purple (yes, purple!) eyes.

"Hi," she smiled. The man took a seat which was mighty bold of him.

"Hi. John Quinn," he offered his hand to her.

"What can I do for you, Mr. John Quinn?" Sookie asked.

"You can settle a bet for me," he proposed.

"Oh really? And how would I do that?" Sookie eyed him suspiciously.

"Well, you see, my friend and I were trying to figure out why the prettiest girl in the room is sitting all by herself. I said it's because you're resting between rounds. He said it's because this isn't really your scene at all and would rather be reading a good book than be here." Quinn told her.

"Both are interesting theories." Sookie nodded. "So what are the terms of the bet?"

"Whoever was right gets to ask you to dance." Quinn said with a charming smile that made his oddly colored eyes sparkle.

"And where is this friend of yours?" Sookie asked.

"Over there," Quinn pointed him out. The blond man in black jeans with smoldering eyes.

Sookie gulped and said, "I think you should go tell your friend he lost."

Quinn laughed and then said, "Oh, I will. Can I buy you a drink, miss...?"

"Stackhouse. Sookie Stackhouse, and yes, that would be wonderful." Sookie smiled at Quinn.

"That's an interesting name. What are you drinking, Miss Stackhouse?"

"It's just Sookie, and I'll take a gin and tonic."

"I'll be right back." Quinn winked at her and then disappeared into the crowd.

"Who was that?" Amelia suddenly appeared.

"John Quinn." Sookie handed her water over to Amelia.

"Do you know him?" Amelia asked after taking a swig of the water.

"Nope." Sookie sat back in her chair.

"He's married." Amelia announced.

"How do _you_ know that?" Sookie arched an eyebrow.

"Because I used to date his wife," Amelia wiggled her eyebrows.

Sookie burst out laughing. Of course Amelia had dated the wife! Amelia certainly had a colorful past. Up until Amelia met Tray, it seemed like anything went. The fact that Amelia had settled into a committed relationship so quickly with Tray was surprising. The last "committed" relationship Amelia was in was with a woman.

"Who's his wife?" Sookie asked out of curiosity.

"Pam." Amelia said with a slightly evil grin.

"Shut the front door!" Sookie's jaw hung open. "Pam married a _man_?"

Amelia shrugged and said, "When it's right, it's right. Look at Tray and me."

"Well, yeah, I guess, but I never thought you were a lesbian. Pam didn't really seem like she was into men."

"Honey, she's into things that'll turn your hair gray." Amelia laughed. Sookie rolled her eyes and then laughed herself.

"What's so funny?" Quinn asked from behind them.

"Hello, Quinn," Amelia looked up at the giant bald man.

"Amelia Broadway." Quinn smirked at her in a way that made Sookie wonder if they knew one another better than Amelia had let on.

"So, you're married to Pam and hitting on my friend, huh?"

"Nah, just trying to beat Northman at his own game. So, Amelia, the last time I saw you was at the bachelor party." Quinn took one of the empty chairs at the table.

Amelia actually looked slightly embarrassed, which led Sookie to believe it had been a very wild party. It would have been right up Amelia's alley. The three of them sat there talking and drinking for a while before the blond man appeared at the table. Up close the blond man was even taller than he'd appeared to be from across the bar.

"Northman, have a seat!" Quinn invited jovially with a raise of his beer bottle and the blond man sat down. "You've met Amelia," Quinn gestured and then put his arm around Sookie. "And this is Sookie Stackhouse. Sookie, this is Eric Northman, the guy who can't read women."

"Nice to meet you, Eric," Sookie extended her hand to Eric.

"Likewise. And don't listen to Quinn. Ever since he got tamed, he thinks he's an expert on dealing with women." Eric took Sookie's hand and smiled at her.

The guys starting picking at each other the way men do and then called it 'bonding.' It was entertaining, to say the least, but it wasn't long before Sookie got tired of sitting. While she appreciated adult conversation for a change, she really wanted to get back on the dance floor.

"I want to dance," Sookie announced and looked at Quinn. "Care to claim your prize?"

"Nah, I'll let Northman have it. He needs it more than I do." Quinn gave a smug grin.

"I'll remember that the next time you show up at my front door looking for a place to sleep because the missus kicked your ass out." Eric smirked and turned to Sookie. "Would you like to dance?"

"Let's see what you've got, Northman." Sookie stood up and strutted her way out to the dance floor.

Without breaking the kiss, Eric kicked the door shut. He easily lifted Sookie off her feet and headed for the stairs. Her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck. Amelia had been reluctant t let her go home with Eric, but she had insisted it was what she wanted. Sookie was admittedly buzzed, but not so drunk she didn't know exactly what she was doing. When Eric had suggested they leave, she was more than willing to go.

Eric managed to navigate the stairs and find his bedroom on the second floor. The house was mostly dark, except for the nightlights that glowed softly in the hallway. He set Sookie down on the bed and quickly removed his shirt. Sookie watched with wild eyes and then proceeded to pull her dress off. She didn't bother with the zipper, just tugged the garment up over her head. Eric's eyes glazed over at the sight of her there, kneeling on the mattress in her black lace bra and panties. She still had her shoes on.

"Sweet Jesus," he muttered quietly and watched while Sookie reached behind her back and unhooked her bra.

"You're overdressed, Northman," Sookie looked him right in the eyes while she removed her bra and tossed it on the floor with her dress.

Eric quickly shed his clothes and then tackled her on the bed. Kisses that were already hungry threatened to devour them both. They writhed against each other, rolling one way or the other while their tongues battled for dominance in the kisses they shared, and their hands roamed just about everywhere they could reach. Sookie found herself on her back with Eric's hands tugging at her panties while his mouth was busy at her breasts.

She grabbed for the slats of his headboard when his mouth settled at her center. His talented tongue made quick work of her, and the sound of her name on his lips was the most beautiful thing he'd heard in a long time. The taste of her was addictive and he found himself hoping this wasn't just a one time thing. He glanced up to see she was looking down at him. One of her hands let go of the bars and made itself at home in his hair. Her fingers tugged his locks and scratched lightly at his scalp, urging him on until she was shouting his name and shaking all over.

There hadn't been any discussion of birth control, but he wasn't taking any chances. He didn't need to knock her up any more than she probably wanted to get knocked up. More than that, he didn't need to catch anything. He'd always been cautious, even if he didn't have the highest of standards sometimes. By looking at her, she seemed clean but that really wasn't a fool proof way to judge. Besides, it was just plain stupid not to take some sort of precaution.

He grabbed a condom from the nightstand and grinned when she took it from him and proceeded to put it on him with her mouth. Her small, warm hands were on his hips, pushing and pulling him while her mouth did all the work. Eric was considerably bigger than anyone else she'd slept with in the past, but listening in on the conversations Lafayette and Amelia had had been very educational.

Eric's hands moved to her head, guiding her along but not putting any real pressure on her. When she pulled away, Eric pushed her onto her back and settled between her legs. Their mouths met again and her hand moved between them to put him at her entrance. His lips and teeth were busy at her neck when he pushed forward.

Sookie groaned as he entered her slowly, giving her body a chance to stretch. There was a slight red mark on her neck by the time he was all the way in and he kissed her lips before pulling back. He stroked gently at first, not wanting a second of what they were experiencing to be painful for her. For him, it was amazing. She was so hot and tight around him and the way her hands were firmly planted on his ass felt amazing.

"You're so fucking tight," Eric muttered against her lips before tugging the bottom one with his teeth.

Sookie responded with a flex of her hips and a tighter squeeze of her hands. "Harder."

He didn't need to be told twice. They rolled suddenly and Sookie leaned back to brace her hands on his large thighs. Eric watched where they were joined as she moved up and down on him, rolling her hips every few strokes. When his thumb found her clit and began to rub, she cried out again and moved her hips a little faster.

Suddenly she lurched forward and Eric stretched to attack her breasts with his lips. Her hands planted on the bed on either side of his head, her hips rocking furiously against him. She moved to do a little marking of her own on his neck and had just moved on to his ear when the pressure that had been building deep in her belly exploded. Eric watched with hooded eyes while she threw her head back and screamed his name. Her muscles were still pulsing and contracting around him when his own release unleashed itself. His hands pulled her down in an almost brutal way while his hips thrust up.

She cried out with the aftershocks it caused. Sookie's small, sweaty body collapsed on his, her chest heaving and her legs shaking. Sookie listened to the pounding of Eric's heart under her ear while she tried to catch her breath. She'd had great sex in the past, but this was something different. It felt like she had literally exploded and she wanted to feel it again.

As much as she didn't want to, she rolled off him so he could dispose of the condom. She flopped onto her back and stared up at the ceiling fan that was slowly turning overhead. Generally speaking, she was more modest. Usually by now she'd be scrambling to get under the sheets or cover herself in some capacity, but she didn't want to. She felt comfortable laying there completely naked with his eyes all over her.

"I don't usually do this," Sookie said when Eric came back to the bed with a damp washcloth.

"Me either," he admitted.

"I just had a hell of a day and I really needed that," Sookie confessed.

"I'm not judging. We all need a little release sometimes," Eric smiled down at her.

"I'd say that was more than a little." Sookie turned on her side. "This bed is really comfortable."

Eric laughed and moved to stretch out next to her. "Yes, it is."

"Sorry, it's just that my bed at home is probably about half the size of this one and it feels even smaller when my daughter invites herself into it. She tosses, turns and kicks like a Tazmanian Devil."

"You have a daughter?"

"Yeah," Sookie admitted with a blush. They hadn't done much talking before they left. She'd judged him solely by the way his body spoke to hers on the dance floor. It was just sex, right? She didn't need to know his entire history for that. "Her name is Jessica. She's two and a half."

"Where is she tonight?"

"With her father. It's his week with her. I get her back next Thursday night. Her father and I...we were never together. Jessica was a great big surprise to us both." Sookie explained with a nervous laugh. "What about you? Do you have kids?"

It dawned on her then that she hadn't even found out if he was seeing someone. She wasn't interested in being his other woman or breaking up a marriage. She didn't think he was tied down, or Amelia would have mentioned it since she seemed to know who Eric was.

"I do have a kid. Claude is six. He's with his mother this weekend. We're divorced."

"I'm sorry," Sookie scrunched her face in apology.

"I'm not. We got married young and for what I thought, at the time, were the right reasons." Eric told her.

"Things always seem so much simpler when we're younger, don't they?" Sookie tucked one of her hands under her cheek.

"She was pregnant, I was in love. I figured it was the right thing to do." Eric sounded rather detached from his past. "But, I got Claude out of the deal. He's a good kid."

"What's he like?" Sookie asked with a smile.

"He's a smart ass a lot of the time. He can be a little closed off, but I think that has a lot to do with his mother. She's not around as much as she should be, or could be, for that matter. She drops in when it's convenient for her, which is really unfair to Claude but I don't want him to hate me for keeping him away from her in ten years. Soon enough he'll be able to make up his own mind about her. He's a smart kid, so eventually he'll see through it when she tries to buy him off like she does now." Eric assessed.

"I got lucky with Hoyt. Even though we sure as hell didn't plan on being parents, he's been great with Jess. He has her every other week but he'll usually come by at least once a week to see her and he calls to talk to her all the time. I don't know how much of it she really understands, but her face lights up every time he calls." Sookie smiled at the thought of it.

"So you're not seeing anyone right now?" Eric asked her.

She paused for a moment before saying, "There isn't really much time for it. I'm sure you know how it is."

"Yeah, I do." Eric nodded.

"I really should find myself a fuck buddy," Sookie laughed and turned on her back. It didn't occur to her that Eric might take her seriously.

"That's probably a very good idea," he moved so that he was partially on top of her. "In fact, I would be happy to help you out there."

She opened her mouth to argue with him but he took the opportunity to lay one hell of a kiss on her. He lingered a little, hovering over her when the kiss broke. His eyes searched hers and he smiled back when she smiled at him.

"Look, Eric, the sex was...it was amazing, but I really don't know if that's a great idea either. I was just thinking out loud." Sookie pushed him back and then sat up.

"Where are you going?" Eric asked when she scooted off the bed and started to gather her clothes.

"I should get going. I have things to do tomorrow and I'm sure you don't need some weird girl sleeping in your bed." Sookie said as she pulled on her panties.

"Whoa, hang on," Eric scrambled out of bed. "How are you going to get home?"

"I'll take a cab," Sookie shrugged and reached for her bra.

"Wait," Eric grabbed her hands to stop her. "You don't have to go. In fact, I think you should stay. Get some sleep and I'll drive you home in the morning."

"That's okay, Eric, you don't have to." Sookie tried to move her hands but Eric wasn't having it.

"It's three in the morning, Sookie," he gave her an almost sad puppy look.

"All the more reason I should go." Sookie said quietly.

"Or," Eric grabbed the bra from her hands and tossed it over his shoulder. "You could stay and we could find out how many other positions we can get into that will make you scream before the sun comes up."

The logical part of her said he was a bit of a pig for suggesting such a thing, but the part of herself she kept caged up ninety percent of the time because Jessica came first told the logical part to sit down and shut up. Every part of her Eric's eyes swept over felt like it was on fire. She missed those feelings.

_It's just one night_, she told herself, then launched her body in his direction.

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><p>It's definitely not conventional, but I promise you this is definitely a love story. Reviews are appreciated. Thanks for reading!<p> 


	2. Scared

Chapter 2: Scared

What was supposed to be one night turned into the entire weekend. They spent all of Saturday and most of Sunday in his bed, exploring each other and what it took to make the other one scream. Sookie returned home in the same dress she'd left her house in on Friday night. Eric drove her home, as promised, and put his number in her cell phone. He'd been with her long enough to overhear the barely intelligible chattering of her daughter and wondered if Jessica was just as cute as her mother.

"I had a great time this weekend," Sookie smiled at him with her hand on the door handle.

"Me too. We could do it again some time, you know?" Eric suggested.

"We'll see. It's hard to make plans when there are kids involved."

"Sookie..." Eric trailed off and leaned over the console that separated the two of them. "I'm not trying to rope you into anything, but I would like to see you again. Even if it's just a release thing."

Sookie chewed her bottom lip before nodding. "Fine, you win. I'll call you. Thank you for everything."

Eric grinned at her. She hadn't been the only one in need of release and some serious adult time. Things were a little easier now that Claude was able to entertain himself a great deal of the time, but that didn't mean he wasn't still up to his eyeballs in Spongebob and Tonka trucks. Claude was a very creative little boy who reminded Eric a great deal of that kid Max in Where the Wild Things Are. The book just happened to be Claude's favorite, and Eric sometimes though his son was hoping to magically be transported into a similar make believe world.

"You're welcome, and thank _you_. I never would have guessed your tongue could-" He was cut off with a kiss before he could finish that sentence.

In spite of all the attention they'd paid one another over the last two days, he could have easily gone another round with her right there in the front seat of his car. Part of him hoped she would invite him in but he knew if she did, he wouldn't want to leave.

They pulled apart and he watched Sookie get out of the car. She walked barefoot on her gravel driveway and up her front steps. She waved to him from the front door once she got it open. Eric started the car and slowly turned around. He waved out the window, watching her in the rear view mirror, watch him drive away.

Sookie closed and locked the door behind her. She dropped her purse on the couch and then headed to her bedroom to change her clothes. After depositing her shoes in the closet she shimmied out of her dress and tossed it into the hamper. It was going to have to go to the cleaners but it could hang out in the hamper until then. She pulled off her underthings and tossed them in the hamper as well.

She walked with confidence to the bathroom and started the shower. As much as she hated to wash away Eric's scent that was clinging to her skin, being stuck wearing the same pair of underwear all weekend didn't sit right with her. She'd thought about leaving them under Eric's pillow but decided that might be more disgusting than a sexy souvenir of their weekend together.

While the weekend definitely centered around sex, they'd talked quite a bit as well. He'd told her more about his son and his ex-wife and the reasons why the marriage had failed. Sookie fought hard when her mouth wanted desperately to say how awful she thought Dawn was for doing what she'd done. She couldn't imagine a life without Jessica anymore and she found it hard to accept a mother could so easily walk away from their child.

She'd learned that Eric was a project manager for a real estate company he co-owned with Pam, Quinn's wife. In fact, Pam and Quinn had met on a job. The relationship had caught Pam completely off guard but she'd fallen head over heels for Quinn, a fact that seemed to make Eric cringe every time he thought about it. Sookie had met Pam a handful of times and tended to agree with his assessment. Finding out Pam had married a man came as quite a shock to her, too.

But then, who was she to judge? Given her own romantic history, Sookie knew anything was possible. Lord knows a baby hadn't been in the cards before her twenty-fourth birthday, much less having a baby with Hoyt. Sometimes things just happened that were unexplainable and it was better if you didn't try to figure out the reasons behind it.

Eric was still slightly bitter over his divorce but it was because of the way Dawn treated Claude, which Sookie could understand. If Hoyt was like that with Jessica, she'd be pissed off as well. Fortunately, Hoyt wasn't the type. As a matter of fact, she was happy he was seeing someone else. She wanted him to be happy and have a real family of his own. In some unconventional way she, Hoyt and Jessica were a family, but it was never going to be like she saw on TV.

At some point, Sookie wanted to get married and have more kids. That point was further into the future, but she knew she wanted it. She wanted Hoyt to have those things as well. Of course, there was the matter of everyone getting along, since Hoyt was always going to be in the picture just as Sookie would always be in the picture for him. Whomever they dated, the other person was going to have to understand. That was part of the reason Sookie liked Holly. She had a five-year-old son from a previous relationship. Her son's father wasn't in the picture, but she still understood the way things worked with Hoyt and Sookie and she didn't object or try to start drama because of it.

It got Sookie thinking more about Eric as she soaped up. He was a single father. Dawn was only in the picture when it was convenient for her, and really, that wasn't fair to Claude, but it made things even harder on Eric. Parenting was difficult enough without parents popping in and out when the timing was good for them. Claude needed consistency and rules, not a buddy who let him have whatever he wanted because she felt too guilty to commit to him full-time.

Sookie reminded herself that wasn't really any of her business as she rinsed off. How Eric handled his ex was his business, not hers. He had his reasons for doing what he did. He didn't need to justify any of it to Sookie or anyone except Claude. All the same, the situation made Sookie sad when she thought about it.

When she got out of the shower she toweled off and pulled on an old t-shirt and a pair of boyshorts. The house needed a bit of straightening up. Some of Jessica's toys were scattered in the living room, but that was pretty common. Sometimes she wondered if they weren't secretly magnetized with the way they always seemed to find their way back to the same spaces over and over.

After that she made her lunch for the next day and set up the coffee pot for the morning. She mentally went over her internal calendar of the things coming up on Sid Matt's schedule. She was one of three paralegals in the office, but she worked exclusively for him. She liked working for Sid. He was a generous boss who let her work from home when she needed to on account of Jessica.

He was old enough to be her father and had a couple of grandkids himself. He lit up like a fourth of July fireworks display any time Sookie brought Jess by the office with her and he didn't mind if she toddled around, batting her eyelashes and charming the pants off of anyone who would pay her any attention. He was particularly fond of helping Jessica photocopy her tiny hands. Sookie didn't mind. She always brought copies home and saved them in a box.

Sookie got into bed just before eleven and set her alarm. All too soon the week would begin. When she closed her eyes, however, all she saw in her mind was Eric looming over her. Turning on her side didn't help since she'd woken up earlier that morning to find him spooned up behind her with his hand busy between her legs. He'd lifted her leg so gently she barely even felt it, and before her eyes were even open, he was inside her.

The sex...oh, the sex had been phenomenal and exactly what the metaphorical doctor ordered. She'd only been partially serious when she'd said something about finding a fuck buddy, but the more she thought about it, and Eric, the more she thought maybe it wasn't such a bad idea. She didn't really want to be in a relationship, but having someone she could call when she needed a release couldn't be such a bad thing. They seemed to be on the same page about things.

They each had responsibilities that required their attention at all times. But she was sure she could make time in her schedule to see him. Even if it was just once a week, on her lunch hour, even, it might be a good thing. She'd be more relaxed, if nothing else, right? As she drifted off she made the decision she would be calling Eric, but not for a few days.

Fuck buddies shouldn't be desperate, right?

**o.O.o.O.o**

Life returned to the way it was before Sookie met Eric. She spent her 32 hours a week in the office, then worked from home on Friday. Jessica continued to alternate weeks between her parents, slowly building her little vocabulary and getting faster and faster on her little feet. There had been quite the drama when she was out playing in Maxine's flower bed (which she knew she wasn't supposed to) and got herself stung by a bee. It turned out she was allergic, and had to be taken to the hospital by ambulance.

While she was there, she saw Eric, of all people. She'd held onto his number but hadn't called him. It had been more than a month since the last time she saw him. When she did, she stopped dead in her tracks. He looked incredibly distraught and something in her heart clenched to see him that way. He looked tired and was dragging his hand through his hair, ruining whatever styling he'd done that morning with his preferred hair product.

"Will you stay with the baby?" Sookie looked over her shoulder to Hoyt.

"Sure. Everything okay?" He asked with concern.

"Yeah, I just saw a friend here. I want to make sure he's okay." She smiled up at him.

"No problem. I'll sign the papers so we can get her out of here." Hoyt promised, then traded places with Sookie.

"Mama'll be right back, baby girl," Sookie kissed Jess's forehead and then left the little curtained area in search of Eric.

She found him outside one of the trauma rooms, staring at what was happening inside. He was wearing a suit, which made sense given that it was the middle of the week. Last time they talked, he told her he was about to break ground on a strip mall over in Red Chute. She wondered if he was still working on that.

"Eric?" She spoke somewhat timidly.

He whipped around quickly, his mouth dropping open to see her standing there. "Sookie?"

"Yeah, it's me," she didn't really know what to say at this point. "Listen, Eric, I'm sor-"

"Don't. I can't worry about that right now. My father-in-law is in there. Old goat's been told I don't know how many times to lay off the fatty foods and scotch but he doesn't listen unless a commanding officer issues an order."

"I'm sorry, Eric."

"What are you doing here?" Eric asked.

"Oh, uh, Jessica got stung by a bee and it turns out she's allergic, so she had to come in here to get it treated. They're releasing her in a few minutes." Sookie explained.

"I'm glad she's okay," he nodded.

"Yeah, me, too. It about scared the hell out of me when Maxine, Hoyt's mama, called to tell me my baby was in an ambulance on the way here. I swear, I'm gonna wring that old woman's neck one day for scaring me on purpose." Sookie threatened with every intention of following through.

Eric smiled briefly but quickly returned to his expression of exhaustion and concern. "So why didn't you call?"

"Life got in the way?" Sookie shrugged but Eric didn't look like he believed her. She sighed and said, "The truth is, I like you. You're probably the exact type of guy I _should_ be dating. You're responsible, smart, funny, good with kids and every time I get close enough to breathe the same air as you my toes curl. I'm just not sure now is the right time to start something and I don't think I could share you. So I figured it was best if I just let things be. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You didn't," Eric said matter-of-factly.

"Oh," Sookie looked down a her feet.

"Everything you just said, minus that last sentence is pretty much the way I feel about you. Only I'd like to add that you have amazing..." he stared right at her breasts, which made her blush. "But I think you're right. It obviously wasn't the right time, or you would have called."

Sookie nodded, feeling slight relieved he felt the same as she did.

"There is one more thing you should know," Eric said when she turned to go back to Hoyt and Jessica. All of a sudden he was right behind her and whispering in her ear, "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you."

In truth, she hadn't been able to stop thinking about him either. He came into her mind at the most random moments, like when she was helping Jessica get her shoes on, or while she was vacuuming, or even when she was putting away leftovers. One minute she'd been thinking about groceries, paying the electric bill or what to get Jessica for her upcoming birthday, and the next, she was thinking about Eric.

At first it was memories of the sex that got her, but as time wore on she found herself thinking about less superficial things. She wondered what his favorite color was, where he'd gone to grade school and what his favorite thing about being a father was. She started wondering if she'd really kept him at arm's length because she was 'too busy' for a relationship or if it was because she was afraid of getting hurt.

"Eric, I-"

"It's okay. I should get back to Noah. Take care of yourself, Sookie." Eric said quietly, then retreated to go check on his father-in-law.

Sookie squeezed her eyes closed and tried to will back the tears that had gathered in her eyes. She didn't even know why they'd sprung up so suddenly. But then it felt like she'd blown a great opportunity. She sighed, opened her eyes and headed for Jessica's little curtained area where Hoyt was signing papers.

"Mama, I'm hungry." Jessica announced.

"I know, baby, me too. We'll have dinner as soon as Daddy finishes signing you out of here." Sookie promised and lifted Jessica from the giant hospital bed when her little arms lifted.

"Daddy hurry." Jessica commanded, getting a restrained smile from Sookie.

"Manners, missy," Sookie reminded her daughter with a kiss to the side of her head.

"Daddy hurry pleeeease." Jessica pouted and her parents laughed quietly.

"I'm going as fast as I can, baby girl," Hoyt smiled up at her.

Letting Hoyt sign her out was probably a mistake since it was obvious he was reading every word that had been printed. Twice. Sookie wanted to yank the clipboard out of his hands and take over, but she didn't. Instead, she entertained Jessica as best she could while Hoyt finished up.

"How's your friend?" Hoyt asked once they were all done and Jessica was officially discharged.

"Oh, he's uh, he's fine. His ex's father was brought in. I'm not sure what's wrong." Sookie shrugged and looked over Hoyt's shoulder.

Eric was watching the three of them walk out of the emergency room. Sookie gave him a pained look and quickly turned face forward again and let herself get absorbed in Jessica's chatter. _Don't think about him,_ she told herself. She didn't listen.

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><p><strong>This may be the only update you get from me for a few days. My Gram was taken to the hospital this morning and she's in hospice now, so there's lots of RL stuff to deal with. I'll be back ASAP.<strong>


	3. You Can Ride Me

**Just in case y'all are curious, this is how I see Jessica **http:/us(dot)123rf(dot)com/400wm/400/400/vanell/vanell1001/vanell100100083/6204536(dot)jpg

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><p><span>Chapter 3: You Can Ride Me<span>

It was hard to keep Eric from popping into her mind. She told herself it didn't matter and it was just a reflex thing but she knew that was what her Gran would have called 'horsefeathers.' She was in denial. Big time. But two weeks after she'd run into Eric at the emergency room she was invited to a Memorial Day barbecue at Alcide Herveaux's house.

She accepted the invitation and Maria had told her to bring Hoyt and Jason along if she wanted to. It was an informal as a backyard affair ever got and the more the merrier. So that Saturday morning she went about making her own dish to pass since it was impolite to show up empty handed. In fact, she made two dishes since she didn't think it would occur to Jason to bring anything.

Jessica was playing on the kitchen floor with some of her puzzles when Hoyt and Jason pulled up. No sooner did she hear Jason's voice than Jess was on her feet and clamoring at the back door for Sookie to let her out. She flipped the latch and pushed the screen door open, unleashing a screaming Jessica on the two men walking toward the house.

Sookie was dressed casually in a pair of jean shorts and a red spaghetti strap tank top. Her had flip-flops with little cherries on them on her feet and the bikini she was wearing under her clothes matched the sandals. Backyard parties meant that at some point, someone would turn on a hose and a water war would start. She had spare clothes already packed for her and Jessica, along with sunscreen and a pair of beach towels.

Hoyt came into the house first and asked if Sookie needed any help while Jason kept Jessica occupied outside. It was a good thing because Jason was even more trouble in the kitchen than Jessica was.

"I pretty much have things under control, but you could get that Pyrex down for me if you don't mind," Sookie pointed to a casserole dish on a high shelf that would require her to get a step ladder, but Hoyt could reach it just fine.

"Here you go," Hoyt handed over the dish once he got it down. "Listen, Sookie, there's something I want to talk to you about."

"I'm all ears," Sookie said as she stirred the pasta for the salad she was making.

"Holly and I are talking about living together." Hoyt told her.

"That's great, Hoyt." She smiled over him but her smile fell when she saw the look on his face. "Let me guess, your mama doesn't approve?"

"She still thinks there's a chance for you and me to work things out," he admitted with a blush.

"Hoyt..." Sookie shook her head.

"I know you and me ain't never been that way and we aren't going to be, but you know how she is when she gets a bee in her bonnet."

Sookie knew all too well. She'd been on the receiving end of more than one of Maxine Fortenberry's lectures about family units, tradition and propriety. It always ended the same way with Sookie telling her to mind her own business. It never ended well.

"You're a grown man, Hoyt. You don't need her permission to do anything. If you want to live with Holly, you should. If you wait on your mama's approval, you'll go to your grave with a lot of regrets because of it." Sookie pointed out.

"I know. I'm not worried about Mama. I was actually worried you might have a problem with it." Hoyt confessed.

"Me? Why would I have a problem with it?" Sookie quirked a curious eyebrow.

"Because you're Jess's mama and if I'm living with Holly, it's sort of like she's Jess's mama too, and I don't don't any problems." Hoyt was always so considerate of everyone. It was one of his best _and_ worst qualities.

"Listen, Hoyt, I like Holly. I think she's been good for you. I've seen how she is with Cody and I know she would never overstep her bounds. You and me...we're never going to have a traditional family on our hands. I want to get married some day and that means there's gonna be an extra daddy in Jessica's life, but you're always going to be the one who helps me make the rules for her. I think Holly understands my role just like whoever I end up with is going to have to understand yours. So if you're waiting on my blessing, you're wasting time because you already have it. Be happy, honey." Sookie smiled at him.

Hoyt looked like the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. It didn't take long for Sookie to finish putting together her pasta salad. She had some sort of jello salad already chilling in the fridge. While Jason got Jessica strapped into her car seat, Sookie packed up the food and Hoyt carried out the diaper bag with the spare clothes in it.

Forty-five minutes later they arrived at Alcide's house just outside of Shreveport. There were tons of cars parked all over. The grill was already smoking away in the back and there were balloons tied to the mailbox at the end of the long gravel driveway. Sookie found a place to park on the shoulder of the street a few houses down from Alcide's place. Jason parked behind her.

Sookie freed a sleepy Jessica from her car seat and carried her to the house with Hoyt carrying the food behind her. They walked around to the back of the house where everyone had congregated. A cheer sounded when they were spotted, but everyone hushed up when they noticed Jess was asleep in Sookie's arms. Hoyt handed off the food to Maria, while Jason went in search of beer. Never mind that it was just barely noon. Pam, Quinn, Claudine, Colman, Tara, JB, Amelia and Tray were already sitting together at a cluster of tables under a canopy.

Quinn and Tray both jumped up, offering their chairs to Sookie. Sookie took the seat closer to Amelia and settled Jessica in her lap. Sookie smoothed away the little hairs that had come loose from Jessica's strawberry blond pigtails. It seemed Jess's hair got a little redder everyday, which she must have gotten from Hoyt since Sookie came from a family of blonds.

"She's so sweet!" Claudine gushed at the sight of the sleeping toddler who was clutching her favorite stuffy froggy.

"Yeah, just wait until she's awake," Sookie laughed and took the beer Jason handed her, even though she had no intention of drinking it quite yet. It was a little too early for her.

"You shush with that!" Amelia rolled her eyes. "She's crabby when she first wakes up, but who isn't?"

"If I woke up in Sookie's lap, I wouldn't be crabby." Quinn shrugged and nearly got a junk punch for it. It was good to see _some_ things about Pam hadn't changed.

Sookie sat and made small talk with the cluster of people she was sitting with. Having a human space heater firmly attached to her didn't make the late spring heat any easier to bear but at least there was a nice breeze. It also helped that they were in the shade or sitting outside wouldn't have been possible.

Slowly but surely more people began to arrive and Sookie didn't know most of the people that showed up. Alcide was the second generation owner of a very profitable construction company that ran out of Shreveport. The first round of burgers and hot dogs were just going on the grill when Jessica woke up, crabby, disoriented and sweaty from sleeping in her mother's lap instead of on the couch or her little toddler bed at home.

Hoyt appeared to rescue Sookie from having a small breakdown of her own, and took Jessica inside to use the potty. Not having to deal with changing diapers anymore was a blessing Sookie thanked God for every night before she went to sleep and before most meals as well. With Jessica off her lap and in her father's hands, Sookie went in search of a drink and ended up clustered with the girls while Maria blended another pitcher of margaritas.

Pam was giving Tara tips on really cute homemade favors for the upcoming wedding. Sookie, Claudine and two of Tara's four sisters were going to be bridesmaids in the wedding that was scheduled for October. The dresses Tara had picked out were pumpkin orange and gaudy as hell, but it was Tara's day. Claudine was the type that could make anything look good but Sookie worried about the strapless dress staying in place. A woman with a chest Sookie's size really needed more support than a strapless dress could offer, and she wasn't interested in having a wardrobe malfunction during the Cha-Cha Slide.

"Auntie Pam!" A voice cut through everything and a small boy with dark hair and hazel eyes came running toward Pam at full speed.

"Goblin!" Pam scooped the boy up gave him a bear hug before setting him down again. It was the most affectionate Sookie had ever seen the woman in the past. "Where's your old man?"

"Talking to Uncle Al." The boy said as if Pam should know better.

"All work and no play, huh?" Pam ruffled his hair and that got her a warning glare. "Ladies, this is my surrogate nephew, Claude. Claude, these are Auntie Pam's friends."

One by one, Pam introduced the girls to the small boy clinging to her hand before pointing behind Sookie and said saying, "And this fool is Claude's father, Eric Northman."

Sookie froze, afraid to turn and wave like everyone else. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. Of course Eric would show up! He was Pam's business partner and Alcide ran the biggest construction company in northern Louisiana. _Stupidstupidstupid_, Sookie berated herself for not figuring it out sooner.

"Sookie, are you okay?" Pam asked with a knowing smirk on her face.

"Sookie?" Eric's surprised voice came from behind her.

Sookie glared at Pam, wondering what Pam knew about her relationship with Eric. Wait, _did_ they have a relationship? Ugh.

"Hi, Eric," Sookie turned and smiled at him.

Eric's eyes widened a bit to see her standing there proudly in nothing more than a pair of tiny shorts and a bikini top. She'd ditched her sweat soaked tank top after Jessica woke up. Why he looked surprised was beyond her. It wasn't as if he hadn't seen her naked several times during the weekend they spent together. In fact, she'd spent more time naked that weekend than she had in her whole life.

"Nice to see you," Eric didn't bother to check the leer.

Sookie wanted to roll her eyes, but truthfully, he looked damn good himself. Just under two months had passed since that weekend they spent together and while her brain had tried to forget him, her body sure hadn't. In fact, her body was damn excited to see him again and didn't mind one bit that he was staring at her like he wanted to have _her_ for lunch.

"Same here," Sookie said politely.

Jessica came running up to her on a tear with a juice box in her hands. "Mama, help please."

Eric's eyes settled on Jessica and smiled. Sookie knelt down so she was eye level with her daughter and expertly pushed the straw into the little foil covered hole so Jessica could drink.

"Don't squeeze too hard, baby," Sookie said as Jessica went to town on her drink. "Jess, this is Mama's friend Eric. Can you say hi?" Sookie pointed to Eric.

Jessica turned her head but quickly had to adjust her line of sight her little head tilted back so far she lost her balance and nearly fell down. Quickly, Jessica looked away from the giant that was looming a few feet away and buried her face in her mother's neck. She got shy around new people, and Eric's size didn't help much at all.

He came a little closer and crouched down before saying, "It's very nice to meet you, Jessica."

Jessica whimpered, clearly not ready to make Eric's acquaintance just yet. Sookie offered and apologetic smile and said, "She'll come around. I bet she'll be climbing all over you before you leave."

"Claude did you say hello to Sookie?" Eric peered around Amelia to catch his son's eye.

Claude nodded and then went back to talking to his Aunt Pam. Hoyt and Jason lumbered over with more beer in their hands than the two of them could drink at one time. Hoyt offered one to Eric, who readily accepted.

"What's with Jess?" Hoyt asked.

"I think I scared her." Eric stood up straight and Jason's eyes went wide.

"I can see why," Hoyt laughed. "I'm Hoyt, Jess's father."

Eric looked to Sookie who nodded. "Eric Northman. I work with Pam and Alcide."

"You're in construction?" Hoyt asked to get the conversation going.

Sookie managed to get Jess peeled off of her. Pam got Jess and Claude playing together and before long, an announcement was made that food was ready. Eric and Sookie found themselves alone while everyone else was loading up their plates.

"So, how've you been?" Eric asked.

"Same as usual," Sookie shrugged. "How's your father-in-law?"

"He ended up having a triple by-pass, but he's recovering well. He's pissed about the dietary restrictions but the alternative is an early grave."

"Sorry to hear that."

They talked about all sorts of little things to fill what would have been an awkward silence. She had things she wanted to say but wasn't sure of how to say them. That was part of the reason she'd steered clear of being in a relationship. The last serious one she'd had was with Bill and it had ended horribly. Everyone said it wasn't her fault he cheated, but she couldn't help wondering if maybe it was just a little bit. If he had been happy with her, truly happy, he wouldn't have started seeing someone else.

Maybe she just wasn't cut out for relationships. While it was true she liked Eric and they had gotten along well enough in the few days they'd spent together, it didn't necessarily mean they should be a couple. Good sex didn't equal a good relationship. Bill had been proof enough of that.

Eric was about to say something when Jessica came running up to Sookie again, careful to avoid getting anywhere near Eric. She tugged at her mother's shorts to get her attention.

"Mama, I play in the sprinkles please?" Jess pointed to the sprinkler that had been turned on for the kids to run through.

"Sure, baby," Sookie reached for Jessica's hand. "Excuse me, Eric."

He nodded and watched Sookie and Jessica make their way inside so Sookie could get Jessica in her swimsuit and later her up with a fresh coat of waterproof sunscreen. Jessica chattered about her new friends and it seemed she had taken a particular liking to Claude, even if she was sketchy on Claude's father.

When Jessica was ready, Sookie walked outside with her to where the other kids were playing. Jessica had only barely let go of her hand when she was hit square in the back with some cold and wet. She turned around to see Jason armed with water balloons.

"You're gonna get it, Jason Stackhouse!" Sookie took off running but Jason wasn't the only one who was armed.

There were several huge coolers packed full of filled balloons. On top of that, Quinn, JB and Alcide were armed with giant water guns. Just as Sookie suspected, an all out water war started. Pam hightailed it toward the house to avoid getting wet, but Eric's long legs allowed him to sprint fast enough to catch Pam before she was able to take cover.

"Eric, put me down or so help me God, I will kick you so hard your son will be sterile!" Pam shrieked precisely three seconds before a random water balloon broke on her chest.

The ear drum splitting screech she made was worse than nails on a chalkboard during an epileptic gran mal seizure. The silk blouse she was wearing was effectively ruined. Someone was going to pay dearly for it, starting with Eric. He set Pam down and took off running before she could do any more damage than clip his shoulder with an angry fist.

"Now it's on, bitches!" Pam yelled.

Sookie paid little mind to Pam, instead scooping a running Jessica off her tiny feet and using her as a shield as she ran through the yard. It was absolute mayhem, and more fun than Sookie could remember having since she was a kid herself. She slipped in a wet patch of grass and was thankful she wasn't holding Jessica when it happened. She had barely hit the ground when three water guns were trained on her.

She tried to scramble away from the blasts of water, but it was useless. Her feet kept sliding in the little mud puddle she was making. A strong pair of hands came to her rescue and lifted her under her arms and set her on her feet. The barely there hint of his cologne let her know it was Eric.

"Thanks," she smiled up at him and felt a chill go through her when his fingers grazed the side of her breast as he let her go.

"Anytime, lover," he smirked at her, then popped a balloon over her head. Where it came from, she had no idea.

When he turned to run she jumped on his back. It threw him off balance for a minute, but it wasn't enough to take him down. She held tightly to his neck while he ran with his arms wrapped around her tan knees. When he ran past JB, Sookie snatched away the water gun from him and started returning fire. She was careful to avoid a seething Pam who was ready to literally shoot someone. Her outfit was completely destroyed.

"I think you made an enemy of your partner, Northman," Sookie laughed in his ear.

"She'll get over it. I'll replace it. Several times over, I'm sure." Eric didn't even sound out of breath.

Sookie recalled him telling her he ran every morning but she wondered how often he did so with an extra hundred and- well, the exact number wasn't important- on his back. What was important was how it didn't feel weird to be where she was, hanging on Eric's back while he dashed around the yard like she was weightless. She liked how they laughed together and he somehow managed to turn just the right way to make sure he absorbed most of the balloons fired their way.

By the time a truce was called, he _was_ breathing heavy and she had realized what a big mistake she'd made by not calling him the day after he drove her home. Eric's hold lessened on her legs but before she had to let go and slide down, she kissed the side of his neck just below his ear and whispered, "Thanks for the ride."

He tried to stifle a slight groan and failed miserably. "You can ride me anytime, Sookie."

Her hands slid down his back and lingered at his hips. She was streaked with mud from head to toe with blades of grass stuck to her feet and legs. A shower would have been nice but it wasn't likely to happen. She turned to go over to the sprinkler to clean up as much as she could, but Eric caught her arm.

"Sookie, wait," he stared down at her with those same smoldering eyes she'd seen the night they met. "I probably have the world's shittiest timing but I really, really want to see you again and I want it to be on purpose this time."

Her face lit up while she tried to think of something clever to say. All that came out was, "I'd like that, too."

"Good. Then how about _you_ give me _your_ number, since I'm convinced you might be the only woman on the planet who doesn't know how to dial a phone." Eric teased her.

Her mouth dropped open but he had every right to tease her. She'd been walking around with his number programmed in her cell for almost two months and she'd done nothing with it but stare at it every once in a while. Thankfully, there was no water damage to his phone and he handed it over to Sookie to program her number into.

"I'm going to call you. Soon." Eric warned her.

"I'll try to get someone to teach me how to answer the phone so you don't think the number is a fake." Sookie snarked at him. "You know, you _do_ know where I live. You could have come and seen me."

Eric stepped closer to her and said, "You're right, I could, but you weren't ready. Now you are. I'll see you soon, lover."

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><p><strong>Thank you all for your kind words, prayers and good thoughts. I really appreciate it. Reviews are a great distraction and make me smile in a dreary time. Thanks for reading!<strong>


	4. Slow

Just a quick reminder that this is unbeta'd and my brain isn't really in editing mode right now. I appreciate all of the condolences and virtual hugs you all have sent my way. They meant a lot to me.

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><p><span>Chapter 4: Slow<span>

Eric wasn't kidding when he said he'd call her soon. He called her the next day and set up a date for the following Friday when Claude would be with his grandparents for the night and Jessica would be at Hoyt's. The week couldn't go by fast enough. The three days seemed to drag on for eternity and by the time Friday rolled around, Sookie was a wreck.

She had a hard time focusing on anything and was thankful she wasn't in the office. Although, maybe being in the office would have helped some. She spent the day trying to do phone interviews for an upcoming lawsuit, but quickly realized her head just wasn't in it. She claimed to be having technical difficulties and rescheduled the interview for the following Monday when she was back in the office.

After that, she answered mundane emails and stuck to faxing out paperwork that needed signatures while she did laundry. At 3:00 she called it a day and started getting ready for her date. She showered while Jessica took her afternoon nap and was wrapped in a towel when Hoyt let himself into the house to pick Jessica up.

"Oops! Sorry, Sook," he apologized when he walked into the kitchen to find her practically naked.

"Relax, Hoyt, I'm covered. Jess is sleepin'." She told him.

"How long?"

"About an hour. I tried to get her down earlier but she wasn't having it." Sookie knew a late nap spelled trouble at bedtime but sometimes it was unavoidable. "I have to finish getting ready, but feel free to watch TV if you want."

"Got big plans?" Hoyt asked while getting himself a glass of lemonade from the fridge.

"I have a date," Sookie couldn't have contained her smile even if she wanted to, which she didn't.

"Anyone I know?"

"Yeah, actually, you met him at Alcide's barbecue. Do you remember Eric Northman?"

Hoyt's eyes bugged a little. "Uh, yeah, a guy like him is hard to forget."

"Well, we met a while back-"

"I remember him from the hospital too, Sook." Hoyt pointed out.

"Oh, right, I forgot about that. Well, remember that Friday when you and Jason came to pick up Jess and she was having that awful meltdown?" Hoyt nodded and she continued, "Well, I went out with the girls that night and I met Eric."

She didn't see the need to tell him she'd spent the following forty-eight hours getting sexed up six ways from Sunday. She and Hoyt were friends, but he didn't need to know about her sex life any more than she wanted to know about his. It was unnecessary information. All that mattered was whether or not Eric could handle Jessica being in the picture, and since Hoyt now knew Eric had a son a few years older than Jess, he had nothing to worry about.

"How'd he end up with a kid?" Hoyt asked.

"His ex-wife is an irresponsible bitch, is the easiest way to describe it." Sookie leaned against the counter.

"There's always two sides to every story," Hoyt reminded her.

"I know, but I doubt I'll ever hear hers. Really, it doesn't matter. The point is, Eric's got primary custody of Claude and his ex isn't in the picture. He knows all about Jess and it's not an issue for him." Sookie told Hoyt.

"I would hope not," he drained the rest of his lemonade just as the familiar sounds of Jessica's wake up cry started. "I got her. You go finish getting ready."

"I will. Come say goodbye before you go?"

"Of course." Hoyt smiled on his way back to Jessica's bedroom.

Sookie was in the middle of curling her hair a little while later when Jessica came toddling into the room clutching her frog, expecting a hug from her mother. Sookie released her hair from the barrel of the curling iron and knelt down to give Jessica the hugs and kisses she needed to get just as much as Sookie needed to give them.

"You be good for Daddy, Jess," Sookie scrunched her nose against Jessica's.

"Eskimos." Jess batted her eyelashes against Sookie's.

"I love you, baby girl," Sookie squeezed her daughter tightly.

"Lub you too, Mama," Jess squeezed back as hard as her little arms and legs would let her.

"Have fun," Sookie waved to Hoyt when she set Jessica down.

"We will. You, too," he winked at her.

Sookie nodded and went back to curling her hair. She heard Hoyt's truck rumble down the driveway and smiled at her reflection in the mirror. This was the first date she was going on in more than a year. Yes, she definitely planned on enjoying herself.

After learning Eric's favorite color was red, she went out and bought a new red dress just for their date. It had cap sleeves and hugged all of her curves, leaving precious little to the imagination. Her hair cascaded down her back in thick, blonde waves and her late spring tan shimmered thanks to the lotion she had generously applied when she got out of the shower. Her eyes were smoky and her lips were the same shade of red when all was said and done.

She had offered to make dinner for them at her house, but Eric had insisted they go out since they were both so frequently cooped up at home. Secretly, she was a little disappointed he had insisted they go out, but it was probably a good thing they would be in a public place. If she had him all to herself in her home she was willing to bet they'd skip over dinner in favor of dessert, and the point of a date was to get to know one another a little better.

Sookie was prepared for what might happen after their date, but she wondered if it would be tacky if she slept with him again so quickly. It seemed slightly silly to be concerned about that when she'd already slept with him, and on the night they met, when she didn't even know what he did for a living beforehand. Really, it all came down to what _she_ thought of herself and not what anyone else thought of her.

Besides, it's not like anyone thought she was a virgin. She had a kid, for Christ's sake. She had a job, took care of her daughter, paid her taxes and attended church when she could get Jessica out the door on time to do it. It wasn't every week, but she tried to get there at least once a month. She didn't drink (much), smoke, do drugs, punch kittens or watch reality TV. She wasn't a saint but she didn't think she was on Hell's waiting list either.

Sookie was spritzing on her perfume when she heard an unfamiliar car come up the driveway. She peeked out her bedroom window to see a red Corvette roll slowly to a stop. A few seconds later, Eric emerged from the driver's side and her jaw dropped. The last time she'd seen him, he was driving a much more sensible, family-friendly Yukon Denali hybrid. Granted, she hadn't been in his garage when she'd been at his house, but he hadn't mentioned having a second car.

The doorbell rang and Sookie took a deep breath before smoothing out a skirt that couldn't wrinkle even if it wanted to. She grabbed her shoes and purse and headed toward the living room. She set everything down on the sofa before answering the door.

Eric was dressed in a pair of black dress pants and a dress shirt the same color as his eyes. The sleeves were rolled up casually and his aviator sunglasses were hanging from the neckline of his shirt. The top three buttons had been left undone giving her just a glimpse of the wifebeater he was wearing underneath it.

"Hi," Sookie smiled up at him.

"Sweet Jesus," Eric smiled back at her. "If red wasn't my favorite color before..."

Sookie turned around slowly, feeling his eyes on her as she did so. When she was facing him again, he leaned in and kissed her cheek gently. He lingered for just a moment before pulling back.

"Let me just get my shoes and purse and we can go," Sookie backed away from him, her eyes never leaving his as she moved to the couch to get her things.

A few minutes later the house was locked up and they were in Eric's car, speeding toward the highway. Aerosmith was playing from Eric's iPod and Sookie wanted to scroll through it to see what sort of music he liked. Aerosmith was a pretty good start, as far as she was concerned. She was of the opinion she could tell a lot about a person by the songs they loved.

They were quiet for a lot of the drive. Sookie had no idea where he was taking her and she liked the idea of being surprised. If she were going out with one of the local boys she would no doubt end up at Merlotte's, fighting for a pool table while trying to keep Arlene from running off with her date. Either that, or her brother would be too busy giving the poor guy the third degree in between rounds of flirting with the waitresses and local single girls he hadn't slept with.

They ended up at a restaurant just outside of Minden on Caney Lakes. It was a woodsy area with a screened in dining room. The restaurant was on the second floor of a small marina with a large bar area inside and the dining area 'outside.' They were seated closer to the 'window' and handed menus.

"Ever been here before?" Eric asked Sookie while she flipped through the menu.

"No, I haven't. I don't get up this way very much. Have you?"

Eric smiled and said, "I was the project manager when this place was built. The owner was in the Air Force with my- with Noah- so I've known him since I was a teenager."

The waitress appeared a short time later to take their drink orders. Eric got a beer while Sookie ended up with a blueberry mojito and they placed their dinner order. While they waited for their meals to come Eric told her a bit more about how he'd come to know Pam and how he'd gotten into real estate development. He made it sound like it was all some big accident but his passion for it was obvious when he spoke. He talked a blue streak about architecture and the beauty of watching what had been drawn up become a pile of materials and eventually, a one of a kind creation.

Sookie, in turn, told Eric about how she had considered law school back when she was in college and admitted she might someday actually go back to school and really become a lawyer. In the meantime, she liked going on fishing expeditions for evidence and gathering statements and records. She was the organized sort who liked having all her ducks in a row. She also liked having a boss that was established but not snooty in the slightest. If she were a lawyer in her own right, she would either have to start her own practice or join a firm and she wasn't willing to do that until Jessica was a little bit older.

"It's bad enough already that I stick her in day care as much as I do but I don't have a whole lot of choice. Maxine, Hoyt's mother, has offered many, _many_ times to watch Jess during the day. It would save us both some money but she needs to be with other kids her own age. Not to mention, I don't need her filling my baby's head with nonsense about how Hoyt and I should be married by now." Sookie shook her head and sipped her drink.

"It is a bit unusual the way Jessica came about, isn't it?" Eric steepled his fingers under his chin.

"Not really. I was drunk, we slept together, the birth control failed and I got pregnant. I don't think that's so unusual. I guess the fact that it was Hoyt, of all people is odd, considering he's been my best friend since they met in kindergarten. But then I've known him for almost as long as Jason." Sookie shrugged.

"And you're sure there aren't any repressed feelings there?" Eric asked her. It was a legitimate question.

"Don't get me wrong, I care about Hoyt. He's a good guy and as far as having a baby daddy goes, I don't think I could ask for a better one, but no, there aren't any repressed feelings there. He's got a girlfriend he's crazy about and I'm happy for him. He knows I'm on a date and he's fine with it. Hell, he's probably ecstatic thinking it'll get his mama off his back about marrying me." Sookie snickered, knowing it was never gonna happen.

"Is she that bad?" Eric asked with a smirk.

"At my baby shower, she gave me her wedding dress." Sookie cringed at the amount of awkward that had come along with the gift.

Eric laughed and said, "Wow, and I thought it was bad when Noah showed up at my wedding with a toy shotgun."

"He didn't!" Sookie' jaw dropped.

"He did," Eric laughed a well. "Only he needed it for his daughter and not me."

Sookie looked thoughtful but said nothing. Eric's expression changed as well.

"I guess I should have known then that it wasn't going to work, but I just figured it was because we were both young and scared." Eric admitted.

The waitress brought their meals. Sookie had coconut shrimp and Eric had fish tacos but they ended up sharing what was on their plates. They talked through dinner about their favorite things and things that drove them crazy. She learned that he loved black and white photography and dabbled in it some himself. He wasn't big time into sports, but he liked playing golf every once in a while when he had the time. He didn't know much about cars, but he considered his Corvette his second child. He purchased it when his business began churning a six figure a year profit.

Sookie's eyes had bugged out a little at that. She'd known he did alright for himself, but his lifestyle didn't seem over-the-top. His home was nice, but modest. It was a three bedroom two story house in a nice subdivision in Shreveport. The Denali, she learned, was owned by the business while the Corvette was in his name.

He didn't have patience for liars, which was something they had in common. He hated chick flicks. He failed to see how Dane Cook was funny. He also hated reality TV and couldn't understand how shows like Dancing With the Stars, American Idol and The Bachelor were some of the most watched things on television.

Sookie didn't understand it either and confessed she preferred classic film noir to modern love stories. Her favorite thing to do on Sunday was make Jessica breakfast, pack a picnic and take her to the park. She admitted she wanted a rather simple life, as cliche as it sounded from a country girl. She didn't want anything fancy and didn't care much about material things or how big her house was. She wouldn't trade her rundown old farmhouse in tiny Bon Temps for the finest antebellum mansion in New Orleans.

She told him she wanted to learn French someday and eventually travel overseas to Europe. She didn't care where, she just wanted to see the world outside of Louisiana. She was annoyed by people who had no manners or work ethic. While she tried to be a good Christian, she didn't much care for Bible thumpers or religious zealots who twisted God's word to suit their own purposes.

All in all, it seemed they had a great deal in common. Things were going well. They got into a bit of a debate over political things, but she found she liked the challenge arguing with him presented. His arguments were very well thought out and not just verbal vomit he spewed because he wanted to be heard on an issue. They agreed there were some things that were black and white, but there was a hell of a lot of gray area in the world where it was difficult to say there was a definitive right or wrong answer. Some things just had to be judged on a case by case basis, which was a problem when it came to legalities.

They talked about the justice system, something Sookie was particularly passionate about given her chosen profession. Eric seemed impressed that she could site case law in her arguments for things, spouting precedence that was attached to certain things and could recall a case she had worked on that could relate to issues they were discussing.

"The hard part about my job is doing work for a client I don't particularly believe in, but we don't get to choose who we represent. The law is the law, and when it's broken, justice needs to be served. Thankfully, Sid's pretty selective about taking on new clients these days. He's gotten to a point in his career where it doesn't have to be about billable hours and how much compensation he'll receive for winning a case. He can take the fight because it's one he believes in and not because there's a big paycheck attached. It's nice to know the work I do is helping someone get justice for a wrong done to them." Sookie told Eric before finishing off her second mojito.

Eric smiled at her with those sparkling sapphire eyes of his until Sookie blushed and started to fidget.

"What?" she asked nervously.

"You are a very passionate person, Sookie Stackhouse." Eric continued to smile at her.

Her eyes averted from his and stared out at the water for a few seconds before returning to his. "Doesn't everyone want to spend their life doing what they know in their heart is the right thing?"

She spoke as if her question should have been common sense but she knew life wasn't always like that. Before she'd started working for Sid, she'd had a few jobs she hated. She'd worked at a coffeehouse in college. She'd bartended at Merlotte's in the summertime, which resulted in just about every male patron hitting on her at one time or another. She'd worked as a page in the law library at Tulane during her senior year of college when she was contemplating law school herself. But she never gave up on the idea that it was possible to have what she wanted if she worked hard and waited for the right opportunity to come along.

After dinner Eric escorted her back to his car. He stopped her before she got in the car and kissed her rather passionately until she was pressed against the side of the expensive machine. The alarm went off, jarring them from the kiss and making Sookie laugh while Eric scrambled to get his keys from his pocket to make the racket stop.

"I feel like I'm in high school and my Gran caught me kissing on the porch," Sookie said between laughs.

Eric smiled and opened the passenger's side door for her. "Did you kiss a lot of boys on your porch, Miss Stackhouse?" He watched as she lowered herself into the Corvette.

"I kissed my share," Sookie's long, tan legs were the last thing to enter the car.

"Lucky bastards," Eric closed the door and went around to the other side.

"What about you?" Sookie asked once he was in the car next to her and had the engine started.

"I didn't kiss any boys in high school," he winked at her while he backed out of his parking space.

Sookie playfully smacked his arm and said, "You know what I mean!"

Eric laughed and said, "High school was like one big party for me. The school part came easy. I've always just soaked up knowledge so I had a lot of free time on my hands."

"What about sports?"

"I'm not much of a team player. I'm a leader by nature and never really got behind the mindlessness of sports." Eric explained as they headed down an old dirt road toward the highway.

"So girls became your favorite pastimes?" Sookie smirked at him.

"Sookie, if you think girls aren't the favorite pastimes of the average teenage boy, you are sorely mistaken."

She knew that all too well. She'd had her share of boyfriends in high school, much to her brother's dismay. Jason had discouraged, threatened and intimidated just about every boy that asked her on a date. She always knew which ones were worth giving a chance to because they didn't run when Jason pulled his macho, posturing 'man of the house' bullshit. It had annoyed her, at first, but she came to look at it as a test of character. If they thought Jason was a pain in the ass it was only because they hadn't seen Sookie when her temper got fired up.

"So, Mr. Northman, where are we going now?" Sookie asked when they'd been on the road for a while.

"I tried to think of things to do but it felt like I was planning an outing with my son so..." Eric trailed off when Sookie laughed. His head turned toward hers and he said, "I thought we'd just drive for a while."

Sookie smiled and nodded. "Do you mind if I..." she gestured to his iPod.

"That's sort of like going through my medicine cabinet, isn't it?" Eric teased.

"Why? Afraid you've got something on there I'll judge you for?" Sookie teased right back. "Besides, if you show me yours, I'll show you mine."

"I hope we're not just talking about MP3 players," Eric smirked again and watched as she blushed a little.

"You've already seen everything I've got. Repeatedly." Sookie reminded him.

"True, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't mind a repeat performance."

Her breath caught in her throat and she leaned over the console between them. There wasn't a whole lot of space in the car and her seat belt didn't let her move very much, but she was able to wiggle enough that she could get close to his ear. Her hand dropped innocently into his lap and stroked his inner thigh. He tried not to shift but she felt the flinch when she touched him. Her breath landed warm and moist on his neck and her lips grazed the shell of his ear.

Just as quickly as the teasing began, she pulled away and picked up his iPod from where it was in the center console. Eric growled quietly at being left behind for 32 gigs of music. Sookie scrolled through the list of songs he had saved in the tiny device and smiled at some of the titles because they were her own favorites as well.

"_Drops of Jupiter_ by Train?" Sookie arched an eyebrow at him when she came to the song.

"Pam put that on there," Eric said quickly.

"Uh huh," Sookie rolled her eyes and kept going.

He had a pretty wide variety of tastes and there were quite a few bands listed she'd never heard of. Her tastes were more Top 40. She preferred music she could lose herself in to songs that would make her think and reflect on the world around her. She figured she spent enough time in her head as it was without analyzing song lyrics to death.

After playing DJ for a while, Eric found a place to stop. They ended up at Lake Claiborne, specifically at Pleasure Point Marina which made Sookie arch an eyebrow at Eric. He just smirked at her in that devilish way of his that let her know this was no accident. He may have taken the long way to get there, but he knew exactly where he had been going the whole time. She wanted to roll her eyes at him, but it was a beautiful spot. The sun had disappeared and there was a slight chill in the air that made her wish she'd brought a sweater with her.

Once they were stopped, he retracted the roof of the car and they sat there staring up at the moon and the stars, watching the clouds drift overhead. He made up silly stories about the constellations that she knew were completely bogus, but she could just as easily imagine him doing the same thing for his son. It was a reminder of just how right they might be for one another after all.

Sookie slipped her shoes off and put her feet up on the dashboard, unaware that if anyone else had attempted such a thing, they would have found themselves walking home. As it was, Eric stared at the lines of her shimmering legs, seemingly hypnotized by the little bit of sparkle they offered. The trace amounts of glitter in the lotion she'd used earlier provided him with a new pattern of constellations to make up stories for in his own mind.

"You want to hear something interesting?" Sookie's head rolled toward his.

"Always," Eric smiled at her.

"I was just thinking that even if we hadn't met at Hooligan's like we did, we would have met anyway since we both know Alcide." She smiled at him. "Do you think we'd still be here if it weren't for that weekend we spent together?"

"I think with that bikini _and_ those shorts you were wearing, hell yes, we'd be here." Eric was only half joking with his answer.

"Is that the only reason we'd be here?" Sookie asked him.

Eric turned as much as he could in his seat, which wasn't much at all, and reached for her small hand. His fingers laced with hers and said, "If you're asking me whether or not this date had sexual implications, the answer is no. If you're asking whether that's the only reason I like you, the answer is no. But if you're asking if I want to have sex with you again at some point, the answer is yes. It doesn't have to be tonight. I like you, Sookie. I understand why you'd want to take things slowly. There's more at stake here than just you and me if things didn't work out."

The kids were a factor for both of them. It would be even harder for Eric to bring her around and let Claude get attached, only for their relationship to fail. Breaking his own heart would be bad enough but he couldn't risk his son's.

"You're right," she smiled at him softly and then kissed the back of his hand. "And just so you know, if you wouldn't have asked for my phone number, I would have been very offended."

"You had my number for almost two months," Eric reminded her yet again.

"I know," Sookie let go of his hand but he snatched hers right hack.

"Why?" He didn't need to ask anything else.

Sookie took a deep breath and said, "It's like I told you at the hospital. When I get around you I have this weird paradox feeling like I can't breathe but like I couldn't stand to be anywhere else either. The more I find out about you, the more intense the feelings get and it's really scary because I've never felt like this before with anyone. So I guess I didn't call because I was afraid to find out the only thing you liked about me was sex."

Eric wore the world's biggest confused man expression and said, "I thought you said you weren't in a place where you wanted a relationship. You kept talking about fuck buddies."

"I know," Sookie sighed. "I thought that was all I could handle and maybe if it were anyone else I'd be okay with that." Eric's expression changed to one of surprise and Sookie let go of his hand to cover her face. "Don't look at me. I'm a mess."

Eric slowly and gently pulled her hands away from her face. "Sookie, look at me," he urged her.

She hesitated for a minute before turning her head toward his. Their eyes met and for a few seconds she thought she might cry from the sweetness she saw in his face.

"I have a really bad habit of making a mess of a good thing. You should know that about me." Sookie confessed.

"And I have a really bad habit of leaving my socks on the bathroom floor."

"It's not really the same."

"A bad habit is a bad habit," Eric shrugged and held her chin in his hand.

"Socks on the floor is easy to correct."

"You think so? My mother yelled at me all the time when I was a kid and-" He didn't get to finish because Sookie cut him off with a kiss.

She got what he was trying to say and she appreciated his acceptance of her confession. Sookie was relieved at the realization Eric was just as good a kisser as she remembered and it wasn't just some over exaggeration of her imagination. He was the real deal and he wasn't letting go of her. He kissed her breathless but didn't push for more. In fact, what she put her hand back on his thigh, he pulled away in spite of his obvious interest in going further.

"What's wrong?" Sookie asked against his lips.

"We said slow. I think we should stick to it." Eric stroked the side of her neck.

She felt a sinking feeling in her chest, but only because there was a part of her that really wanted to throw all that slow business out of the way just to get a taste of what she knew he had to offer. He was right, though. It was best to move slowly. Yes, they could probably sleep together again that night it wouldn't do them any harm. In fact, it would probably do them both really, _really_ good, but would it also undo the work they'd done that night to further their relationship? She didn't know what the right answer was and since she wasn't sure, it was best to do as he said and take it slow.

"You're right. Slow." Sookie nodded, even if there was a part of her that wanted to launch over the console between them into his lap, and she knew precisely which part of her that was.

"Slow," Eric repeated while moving to kiss her again.


	5. Secrets

Thank you so much for your reviews last chapter! I finally have a day off from all the funeral planning so I'm spending it distracting myself with fluffy fic writing. Once again, thank you to everyone for all of your thoughts, prayers, condolences and hugs. I appreciate every single one of them xoxo

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><p><span>Chapter 5: Secrets<span>

Slow felt like torture. They were able to meet again the following week for lunch since Eric had a project in Ruston not too far from where Sid's office was. It was a few more dates after that before Eric learned Sookie's birthday was approaching. He'd found out from Alcide, who had been invited to a dinner party at Sookie's house. Word had gotten out pretty quickly the two of them were seeing each other thanks to the gossip in Bon Temps. They weren't really trying to keep it a secret, they just wanted to shield the kids from it until they were sure it was going to work.

Jessica was once again at Hoyt's house for the week one Saturday night a few weeks after their first date. Claude was with Dawn's sister, Sunni, for the night. Sookie invited Eric over for dinner and to give him the tour of her house since the bulk of their dates had been lunch dates, with the exception of the one dinner date they'd had on a weeknight while Jason watched Hoyt for a few hours and Claude stayed with Pam and Quinn.

Sookie made a simple dinner of grilled chicken Cesar salad and a cold summer squash soup her Gran used to make all the time. They were sitting on the porch swing eating fresh strawberries and talking about fourth of July plans when Eric lowered the boom on her, so to speak.

"I want to meet your daughter," he said and then bit the strawberry Sookie held up for him.

"You've already met her. She was the cowering redhead, remember?"

"Yes, I remember, but I don't want her to stay the cowering redhead. And I want you to get to know Claude better. And there's one more thing I want." Eric held up a berry for her.

"What's that?" Sookie asked before she bit.

"I want to know why you didn't tell me about your birthday party."

She nearly choked on the strawberry, sputtering and coughing before she gave her answer. "I didn't tell you because I wasn't sure we were at that point yet."

"The point where we celebrate birthdays?"

"No, the point where we go to family functions together. I mean, you met pretty much everyone that's going to be there, but..."

"But?" Eric looked at her expectantly, waiting for some big reason why she'd kept silent about it.

"I should have told you. I'm sorry."

"You know, at some point, you're going to have to trust me, Sookie."

"It's not like that. I _do_ trust you."

"Then why all the secrecy?"

"It wasn't a secret. I just..."

"You just...?"

"Bad habit," she admitted regretfully.

Eric got up off the porch swing and went into the house. Sookie quickly followed him, leaving the rest of the berries behind.

"Eric, I'm sorry, I-"

"I'm not like the others, Sookie, and you have to stop treating me like I am." Eric said firmly. "You keep pushing me away, then pulling me back and it's really confusing. I'm not a mind reader. If you're not ready or you're having second thoughts about us, I need to know now."

"No, Eric, I'm not having second thoughts. I'm just not very good at this." Sookie admitted with defeat. "I'm not used to sharing my life with someone yet. I'm used to it being just Jess and me, and I'm still getting used to the idea of an 'us' that includes a third person. I swear I didn't keep it from you because I don't want you there or because I'm embarrassed about our relationship. I just wasn't sure if you'd want to come."

"You could have asked, Sookie." Eric shook his head.

"Will you come?" She asked him.

His eyes met hers. He was prepared to tell her not to ask out of guilt or pity, but the look in her eyes told him her invitation was genuine. All the same he asked, "Are you sure you really want me there?"

Sookie quickly crossed the room to where he was standing. She threw her arms around his neck and pulled him down to kiss her. She kissed him passionately, pouring all of her emotions into it. Her fingers scratched lightly at the back of his neck. When she pulled back she said, "I really, really want you to come."

The breathiness of her voice made him growl. He lifted her off her feet and her legs wrapped around his waist. They ended up on the couch, making out like teenagers. Sookie pulled back long enough to take off her shirt. The light scratching of his scruff on her neck made her giggle quietly. Eric pulled back and cupped her face in his hands.

"That sound drives me crazy," he said before crashing his lips against hers.

Sookie's hips rocked against him, causing a deep growl to rumble up from his chest. Her bra joined her shirt on the floor, and Eric's shirt joined the party shortly after that. Her hips continued to move at a slow, but steady pace. Eric buried his face in her breasts while her fingers ran through his hair, scratching and pulling at him until their lips met again.

"Bedroom," Sookie muttered into his mouth, but neither made any effort to get up right away. Her hips continued to move while Eric unbuttoned her shorts and let his fingers dip into her panties. "Oh, God," she breathed against his neck, adjusting her hips to try and get more friction where she needed it.

"So wet," he sucked at her neck, delighting at every noise she made while writhing against him.

The face she made when she came was more beautiful than anything he'd seen in a long time, and he wanted to see that face over and over again. When she was shaking and clinging to him he lifted her from the couch and finally carried her back to her bedroom. He set her on her bed and pulled off what was left of her clothes before kicking off his shoes and taking off his own pants.

They'd had a sex talk during their last date. Sookie told him she'd had an IUD put in after Jessica was born since she didn't plan on having another child until she was married. Neither of them had any new sexual partners since the last time they slept together. All the same, Sookie reached into her nightstand for a condom and handed it over to Eric. They were both of the opinion that it was better to be safe than sorry and didn't want to take any chances.

Sookie stared at his face while he put the condom on. The level of concentration was impressive but as soon as it was on, he pounced on her. His weight settling on her felt reassuring. His fingers brushing her hair away from her face was sweet but his lips on hers was even sweeter. Her hand moved between them to stroke him, and sensation had him tugging her bottom lip between his teeth between kisses.

His face disappeared between her breasts again moving from side to side like he was trying to decide which one he liked better. The tension in her stomach started to build and when she couldn't take anymore her small hands found his face and pull his mouth his mouth to hers. The kisses were fevered and hungry, a perfect expression of how much they wanted each other. His tongue stroked against hers while her hips moved in a rhythm that countered the movement of his tongue.

"Eric, please," she whimpered below him, her hands traveling down his back in attempt to reach the part of him she had decided she liked best.

He positioned himself at her entrance and slowly began to fill her. He'd move in an inch and then pull back just a little, repeating the process over and over until he was buried inside her and she was right at the edge. He stilled and met her gaze, grazing his thumb over her cheek. She stretched forward to kiss him and roll her hips all at once to let him know she wanted more. He pulled back and pushed forward just as slowly, cradling her face in his hands and kissing her gently.

They moved together, Sookie's knees pressed against his sides and her ankles crossing at Eric's lower back so her heels pushed him just a little each time her thrust into her. Her hands dug into his shoulders, scratched his back and pulled at his hair and it seemed like it was happening all at once. There was no rush, despite the insane need they were feeling for one another.

Their movements were slow, gentle and sweet, not at all like the first time they slept together the night they met. Sookie attacked him with kisses anywhere her lips could reach, while Eric seemed perfectly content to remain face down in the valley between her breasts, drifting slowly from one side to the other. When he was close to his release he pulled back just a little and lifted her hips a little higher off the bed. The change in angles meant he was hitting the right spot inside her, and her small hand reaching down to rub her clit threw her over the edge seconds before he came with a roar of his own and fell forward onto his hands.

Sookie reached up to pull him down to kiss him but his head turned and captured her fingers in his mouth. Eric kissed the tips of them when he let them go, then leaned down to kiss a line from her forehead, down her nose to her lips. Her arms wrapped around his neck, her tongue battling his as he pulled out. He swallowed the whimper that escaped her and reluctantly broke the kiss to get rid of the condom.

Sookie lay there on her back, sweating and gasping for air. "I really need to upgrade this house so it has central air conditioning."

Eric chuckled and reached to turn up the ceiling fan. "I'm not sure your house is wired for it. Alcide could come take a look at it for you."

"Yeah, he's been over for dinner. Unfortunately the estimate he gave me is way over what I can afford right now. I'll have to settle for the window units until I can." Sookie stretched forward to get her hair up away from her neck.

"You also need a bigger bed," Eric said once he was stretched out next to her and looked down at his feet, which were definitely hanging off the edge.

"Maybe you just need to be shorter," Sookie shrugged. "Besides, a bed as big as the one you have at home wouldn't fit in here. This one is a tight fit as it is."

"Then I guess we'll just have to have sleepovers at my place from now on," Eric turned his head toward hers.

"Yeah, about that..." Sookie rolled over onto her stomach. "I think you were right. It would be a good idea if we took the kids out together one night. They got along okay at the barbecue so I'm not real worried about it but I want Jess to be okay around you and I don't want Claude to feel weird around me, or think I'm stealing you away from him."

"I think you're worrying for nothing. Claude likes you." Eric told her while raising her hand to his lips to kiss the back of it.

"I'm happy to hear that, but I still think we need to do this." Sookie leaned down and kissed his chest in return.

"We will. When I get into the office on Monday I'll check my schedule and see what I have going on next week." Eric promised her.

"Good. So, are you coming to my birthday party then?"

"I'd like to. Is this a kid friendly event?"

"Are you kidding? If I had cake in this house without Jessica, she'd have a little heart attack. She inherited her daddy's sweet tooth." Sookie laughed quietly.

"How is her father with all this?"

"Hoyt?" Sookie asked and Eric nodded. "He's fine with it. I think he'd be nervous if he hadn't met you already, but he knows I haven't been bringing you around Jessica just yet. What about your ex?"

"Dawn is off on her own planet. If she knows anything at all about you it's because her parents told her I've been seeing someone." Eric turned on his side.

"So you don't care what she thinks?"

"No," Eric said with conviction. "I'm more worried about who _she_ brings around Claude. Her judgment isn't really up to par."

"She married you," Sookie smirked.

Eric's eyes widened a little, making Sookie chuckle. "Miss Stackhouse, are you insinuating that I'm of weak character?"

"Not at all," Sookie moved a little closer. "In fact, letting you get away means she's the one with weak character. But her loss is my gain."

"Yes, it most certainly is," Eric pulled her into a kiss that started round two.

**o.O.o.O.o**

"Here you go, Sookie," Pam handed over a pretty pink gift bag with sparkly pink ribbons hanging from it.

"Thanks, Pam," Sookie leaned in to accept the air kisses Pam offered.

"There's this, too," Quinn said, and handed over a pink paddle with 'Happy Birthday!" written across it.

"Uh..." Sookie stared at it but didn't reach for it.

"Give me that!" Pam held out her hand to Quinn with a less than amused expression on her face.

"Come on, Babe, it's a gag gift." Quinn practically whined while handing over the world's worst gag gift.

Pam took the paddle from him and rolled her eyes. Quinn looked ridiculously defeated, although Sookie wasn't sure why. She smiled as politely as she could while Quinn sulked and muttered about going off to find a beer. As he walked past Pam, she swung the paddle hard.

"Ahh!" Quinn jumped and looked over his shoulder at Pam.

"Maybe I should keep this." Pam grinned with an evil gleam in her eyes that made Sookie extremely uncomfortable.

"Please do," Sookie tried to keep her gracious hostess exterior in check, but it wasn't easy with the glimpse she was getting into Pam and Quinn's sex life.

Thankfully, Eric and Claude arrived at that moment, giving her a reason to depart Pam's company. She scuttled across the room to the front door where Eric was standing, holding Claude's small hand. Both of them were dressed casually in jeans and t-shirts. Claude's hair was styled with more product than was probably necessary for a six-year-old, while Eric was sporting bedhead that made her want to drag him into her bedroom and forget there was a houseful of people wanting to talk to her.

"Hi," she smiled up at him and leaned in to accept the kiss he offered her. "Hi, Claude! How are you?"

"I'm fine, Miss Stackhouse. Happy birthday!" Claude said respectfully.

"Thank you, Claude, and call me Sookie, okay?" Sookie smiled down at him, unsure of what sort of contact was appropriate. She figured it was best to let Claude set the pace there.

"You look lovely this evening, Sookie." Eric handed her yet another gift bag, only this one was bigger and bright red. He leaned in and said, "You might want to put that one away for later."

Sookie flushed slightly, nodded and then knelt down to Claude's level. "There are a few other kids playing out back if you want to join them."

Claude nodded and let Sookie take his hand to show him the way.

"What about me?" Eric asked.

"We'll have playtime later," Sookie winked and took Claude outside.

Just about everyone had moved outside since it was so warm in the house. It was the drawback to having a July 1st birthday. Pretty much every year Sookie was guaranteed the day would be hot and muggy, forcing everyone outdoors where there was at least a breeze to help cool them down. Since her birthday fell on a Wednesday, she knew people probably wouldn't be staying too late.

"Can I get anyone a drink?" Sookie asked, scanning the small crowd of faces for Eric's, but didn't see him anywhere.

Everyone was okay on drinks so she went inside to get one for herself. She found Eric in the living room where she'd been depositing the gifts she'd gotten. Apparently Quinn hadn't given up on the paddle idea, and had put it in the pile.

"So, why can't I open this with the others?" Sookie asked, holding up the bright red bag Eric gave her when he'd come in.

"You can, if you'd like, but I suppose it'd give you a reason to use this," Eric picked up the silly pink paddle.

"Ugh," Sookie groaned. "Uh, no. Quinn can take that home with him."

Eric laughed and wrapped Sookie in a hug. She snuggled against his chest and closed her eyes, just breathing him in. The sounds of people laughing and talking out in the yard were distant. She had a flash of her future, seeing a similar moment except she was all round and heavy with another baby growing inside her; Eric's baby.

"This is nice," she said quietly without even realizing she said it.

Eric's response was a kiss on the top of her head. "We should probably get outside before someone comes looking for us."

"Yeah, probably." Sookie tilted her head back and stretched up to kiss him. _God, these lips_, she thought as he kissed her. Then there was the slight sting of the paddle swatting her backside and she yelped. "I'll get you for that!" Sookie called after Eric when he took off for the back door after dropping the paddle on the table with the other gifts.

An hour later Sookie was sitting at the picnic table out back with Eric at her side and Jessica on her lap while her friends were singing "Happy Birthday" to her. Jessica leaned in with her mother to blow out the candles. When the candles were all out, Sookie sat up straight and smiled in Eric's direction. He leaned in and kissed her gently on her lips.

"Here, Mama!" Jessica presented Sookie with a handful of cake.

Everyone laughed while Sookie kissed the side of Jessica's head, then leaned forward to take a bite of the cake in her daughter's hand. "Thanks, baby. How about we let Aunt Ames cut pieces for us, though?"

"This is mo' fun." Jessica said with a cheesy smile on her face.

"Oh yeah?" Jason smooshed cake in Jessica's face.

"Uncle Jase!" Jessica shrieked and dissolved into giggles.

A small cake war started after that, and if anyone actually ate it, Sookie would be shocked. The second cake started flying, Pam bolted for the house, not willing to have another outfit ruined like at the Memorial Day party. When all was said and done, Sookie and Jessica got the worst of it.

"Will someone please get the hose?" Sookie laughed while wiping frosting off Jessica's face with a damp dish towel Pam tossed from the back porch before locking herself in the house again.

"I'm sticky," Jessica giggled while Sookie tried to clean her up.

"Yes, you are, you little monster," Sookie shook her head at the amount of cake smashed into her daughter's hair. "You're gonna need a bath, missy."

"I'll take her in," Hoyt offered after Jason brought the hose over and started rinsing Jessica off.

"Thanks," Sookie took the hose from Jason.

Eric was occupied with Claude at the picnic table. His back was to her. She smirked in an evil way, then quickly crossed the yard to where Eric was, and blasted him right in the back with the cool water coming from the hose. He jumped a little, which rocked the bench he was sitting on. He whipped around to see a cake covered Sookie laughing hysterically.

"I told you I'd get you back," she taunted, then went about rinsing cake from her hair with the hose.

Eric stared at her with a raised eyebrow and she could practically see the wheels in his head turning. Whatever he was plotting, she was sure she would enjoy. Why did there have to be a dozen other people out in her yard right then? While Sookie got as much cake and frosting off of herself as she could without a shower, Amelia and Pam brought out Sookie's presents for her to open.

Tara brought Sookie a towel to dry off with and then Sookie took a seat at the end of the picnic table. One by one, she opened the gifts she was given by her friends. Tara gave her a gift certificate for the boutique she owned. From Claudine she got a series of books Sookie had been talking about for months but hadn't had time to pick up herself.

Sookie teared up a little when she saw Hoyt's present. He'd had a picture framed from the Memorial Day party she didn't even know had been taken. In it, she was sitting under the canopy with Jessica asleep in her lap. Jess had her thumb in her mouth and was clutching her frog. Sookie had her arms loosely wrapped around Jessica, rubbing her back while kissing the top of her head. Leave it to Hoyt to do something that sweet.

"Here, Sookie, open mine next." Claude said with excitement and pushed a small box at Sookie.

"Okay," Sookie took the box from him.

She looked to Eric before tearing the paper away from the box. Under the paper was a black velvet box that had her arching an eyebrow in Eric's direction. She opened the box and smiled at what was inside. It was a silver charm bracelet with three charms hanging from it: a heart, a gavel and frog with Jessica's birthstone in its stomach.

"It's beautiful, Claude, thank you." Sookie smiled at Claude, who smiled with pride.

"You're welcome. The frog is my favorite." Claude volunteered.

"Me, too," Sookie leaned over to give Claude a hug and he hugged her back. She smiled over the little boy's shoulder at Eric, who was smiling back at her.

Not long after all the gifts were opened, people started to head home. It was a work night, after all, and that meant being up early the next day. Hoyt stayed long enough to tuck Jessica in and talk with Eric for a bit. Not that she expected problems, but Sookie was glad to see Eric and Hoyt getting along. Claude sat on the couch watching _Finding Nemo_ while Eric helped Sookie clean up.

"Have fun tonight?" Eric asked Sookie while she emptied what was left in a few plastic cups into the sink.

"I did. Thank you for the bracelet."She leaned over and kissed him.

"It was all Claude's idea." Eric insisted.

"He knew to get a gavel charm?" Sookie arched an eyebrow.

"Well, I helped him pick out the charms, but the bracelet itself was his idea." Eric explained.

"He's a bright kid. Do you have plans for the fourth?" Sookie asked him.

"Actually, we were invited to spend the day down at Calcasieu Lake just south of Lake Charles on my friend Sophie-Anne's boat. She told me to bring you and Jess along if you didn't have plans. Pam and Quinn will be there as well. We're planning on spending the night." Eric explained.

"How big is this boat?" Sookie arched an eyebrow.

"Well, Sophie's husband is a lawyer in New Orleans and Sophie is an heiress. I don't know the measurements of it, but I know there are three bedrooms and a slide off the back of the boat." Eric told her.

"Wow." Sookie blinked. "Sounds like a fun way to spend the fourth."

"I think so. So, are you busy this weekend?" Eric asked.

"Well, I _was_ thinking to spend the day at my brother's, watching him get stupid drunk and hit on anything in short shorts..." Sookie trailed off.

Eric laughed and said, "Please tell me this is a better offer."

"Rectal surgery is a better offer. No offense." Sookie snorted and turned toward Eric. "I'd love to go with you."

"Good. We're boarding the boat at sunset Friday." Eric told her. "It takes about four hours to get there, so I was thinking to leave a little after lunchtime."

"I can do that. It'll give me time to get my work done in the morning. I'll talk to Hoyt about having Jess this weekend since usually he'd have her." Sookie promised him.

"You don't think it'll be a problem?" Eric asked.

"I don't think so. Hoyt had her on Easter, so it's my holiday. Besides, he had her last year for the fourth." Sookie recalled. She'd spent the night at Amelia's, getting stinking drunk on some sort of red, white and blue shot that gave her the worst hangover she'd had since she was in college.

They agreed Sookie would meet Eric at his house Friday afternoon, then he would drive them down to Lake Charles since he had a bigger car that included DVD monitors in the headrests to keep the kids occupied on the drive.

"Soo, can I open my mystery gift now?" Sookie asked him.

Eric looked around the corner to see that Claude was passed out on the couch. He grabbed Sookie's hand and pulled her back toward her bedroom. Once the door was closed, she sat on the edge of her bed and started to dig through the tissue paper in the gift bag resting on her lap. The bag weighed almost nothing. She fished out a soft bundle wrapped in paper the same shade as the bag.

She looked at Eric, who was sitting on the edge of her dresser, while she unfolded the paper to reveal a scarlet red silk scarf. "It's beautiful, Eric."

"I'm glad you like it," he stepped forward and took the scarf from her hands after she examined the delicate swirls in other shades of red that were patterned through the scarf.

"Why did you want me to open this here?" Sookie arched an eyebrow at him.

"Well, because it's not just a scarf," his voice was low and a little devious as he brought the scarf up and put it around her head, covering her eyes.

Sookie gasped while he blindfolded her.

"And the scarf isn't your real present," he whispered in her ear once the scarf was gently tied in place. "Lay back for me, lover."

* * *

><p>Once you recover from your fainting spell, a review would be fantastic. Sorry there's no big lemon at the end, but you can use your imagination. We all know how creative Eric is ;)<p> 


	6. Fireworks

I am impressed I wasn't massacred for not giving a full lemon at the end of the last chapter but the imagination is a pretty powerful thing. I'm sure ya'll had fun figuring out what might have gone down after Eric did. HA! Once again, thanks to everyone for their reviews, condolences and hugs. I appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 6: Fireworks<span>

The trip down to Lake Charles was rather uneventful. The kids slept most of the time, except for the last half hour when they started to get antsy from sitting for so long. By the time they pulled into the marina, it was just after 6:00. Sookie retrieved Jessica from her car seat and set the girl down on the gravel.

"Mama, I gotta tinkle." Jessica did the little dance she always did when she really had to go.

"Eric, is there a bathroom around here somewhere?" Sookie asked while looking around.

"Yeah, at the office," Eric pointed toward a small white building a few yards away.

"Great. Claude, why don't you come with us?" Sookie suggested with an outstretched hand. "We'll be right back."

Eric leaned down to kiss Sookie before she headed off with the kids. They made it to the bathroom just in time. Once the kids were all pottied and cleaned up, Sookie brought them back to the car. Eric had unloaded all of the bags he'd expertly packed in the trunk. When Sookie moved to grab one of the bags, Eric swatted her hand away.

"I got it," he smiled at her.

"Eric, don't be silly. I can help." Sookie insisted.

"Nope, can't let you. You hold hands, I'll hold bags." Eric winked at her.

"Fine," Sookie agreed and then watched as Eric gathered everything up. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm good. Let's go," Eric nodded toward the piers.

The four of them headed for the boat, looking very much like the average family as they went. Sophie-Anne's boat was anything but average; it was enormous. To Sookie, it looked more like a yacht. She had expected something bigger since it was a houseboat but this was just insane. There had to be at least three levels to it. The slide Eric had mentioned was on the second deck and required at least a six foot drop into the water.

"My stars," Sookie muttered when they reached the boat. "This is it?"

"Yep, this is it," Eric smiled over his shoulder at her before yelling for Sophie-Anne.

A petite woman with coppery red hair and a wrinkle-free face appeared from inside the cabin of the boat. She was elegantly dressed in a white pants suit that seemed out of place for a houseboat. Expensive looking jewelery was on her fingers, wrists, ears and neck. She had a high, feminine voice and a hint of a French accent. She glided toward Eric and pushed herself up to air kiss his cheeks.

"There you are! I was starting to think you had second thoughts." Sophie-Anne's eyes sparkled in the sunlight that was starting to fade.

"We got a late start and traffic was awful." Eric apologized.

"Don't worry, darling, we have plenty of time. Introduce me to your friends," Sophie-Anne looked around Eric to Sookie and Jessica.

Eric set down the bags on the deck of the boat and turned toward Sookie. "Sophie, this is my girlfriend, Sookie Stackhouse and her daughter, Jessica."

"It's nice to meet you, Sophie-Anne. Thank you for inviting us." Sookie let go of Claude's hand to shake Sophie's.

"Oh, it's no trouble at all. Your daughter is adorable," Sophie-Anne knelt down and smiled at Jessica. "Hello, Jessica."

"Hi," Jessica quickly turned and buried her face in Sookie's skirt.

"She'll warm up to you, I promise." Sookie reached down and picked Jessica up.

She was always so shy around new people. It was adorable how she took her time, sizing up each person before deciding whether they were friend or foe. There were very few people Jessica didn't warm to, but when she didn't, Sookie took it as an omen. If, at the age of two, Jessica could spot something unsavory, she thought maybe she wasn't looking hard enough.

Sophie-Anne and Claude exchanged words before she suggested giving the tour. Pam, Quinn and Peter were up on the second level having drinks while Peter cooked dinner. The inside of the boat was even more impressive than the outside. The living room area had a wrap around couch that included a pull-out bed. A flat screen TV was built into the wall, as were the electronics it was wired to. There were two leather captains chairs near the large set of windows and based on their position, she figured they swiveled.

There was a full kitchen with state of the art appliances. The kitchen on the boat was better than the kitchen Sookie had at home. Beyond that was a small bathroom that was just big enough for a sink, toilet and shower stall. It was just barely bigger than an airplane bathroom. The hallway was lined with closets for passengers to stow their gear and bags. There were two bedrooms, each with a full size bed, but there was no other furniture in the room. Televisions were again built into the walls, but there wasn't room for anything else.

Pam and Quinn were set up in the back bedroom, leaving Eric to drop their bags in the bedroom closer to the kitchen. One of the bags included a little air mattress Sookie had bought for when she took Jessica camping. Jessica loved that mattress and Sookie knew getting her to sleep on it wouldn't be a problem. The question of where to set it up was a little more difficult, but they'd worry about that later.

Up on the deck overhead, there was the control room for the boat, as well as Sophie-Anne and Peter's bedroom. Peter was dressed in a far more relaxed manner than his wife. He had on a pair of Bermuda shorts and a white polo with a pair of leather sandals. He shook hands with Eric and Sookie before offering them drinks. Claude gravitated to Pam and made himself comfortable in his surrogate aunt's lap.

Then up on the third level of the boat there were chaise lounges and padded benches for sunbathing. It was probably the most private area on the boat and it offered a fantastic view from the height it was at. Sophie-Anne made small talk in between explanations of what was where and how things worked. Sookie learned that Sophie-Anne had inherited a great deal of money from a family trust that went back before The War. At one time the LeClerq family had owned a great deal of real estate in Louisiana, including several buildings in New Orleans that had since been landmarked by the state.

She'd met Peter Threadgill, attorney at law, when her father's estate was being settled ten years before. Peter wasn't a probate lawyer, but he worked in the same firm as the lawyer who was handling the LeClerq estate. They had dated for a few months before marrying suddenly in the Bahamas in a private beach ceremony. They'd been married for the better part of a decade.

"Can I get you a drink?" Sophie-Anne asked once everyone was gathered on the second deck.

"Just water for me," Sookie said while Eric accepted a beer that was passed to him by Peter.

The kids played quietly, looking over the side of the boat, lost in their own make believe world where a sea monster was trying to get them. It was fun to watch how creative they could get. Jessica was slowly warming up to Eric. At least she wasn't turning the other way and hiding her face every time she saw him. She was still playing shy, but Sookie would catch her daughter staring in Eric's direction, observing his movements and the way he talked to other people. For being so little, Jessica was a very observant little person. Not much got past her.

After dinner Pam and Quinn kept an eye on the kids while Sookie and Eric helped Sophie-Anne with the clean up. Pam was actually a very good babysitter but it was mostly because it was a temporary responsibility and she didn't have to make any real decisions outside of the common sense sort of things. Peter got the boat going while Sookie was washing dishes and by the time everything was tidied up, the sun had set and they were half way to their destination on the west side of the river.

"Mama!" Jessica came running into the room like her pants were on fire and wrapped herself around Sookie's leg.

"What's wrong, baby?" Sookie looked down.

"Quinn scareded me," Jessica sniffled. "Fishies gonna eat my toes."

Sookie looked around for Quinn, prepared to slap him silly. She dried her hands and peeled Jessica from her leg. "I promise you, sweetheart, the fishies won't eat your toes. Quinn was just being silly."

Jessica wasn't buying it for a second and squeezed her mother hard. For the remainder of the night, every time Quinn got near Jessica she would squeal and look away from him quickly.

"I didn't mean to scare her," Quinn apologized.

"She'll get over it. You just have to be careful what you say to her, Quinn. She doesn't quite understand the difference between real and make believe yet." Sookie reminded him.

"You're right. I really am sorry."

"Did you hear that, Jess? Quinn's sorry. Fishies won't eat your toes." Sookie rubbed Jess' back but it seemed useless.

Not long after that it was Jessica's bedtime. Sookie took her down to the first deck and located the inflatable mattress. Eric got it blown up while Sookie changed Jessica's clothes, brushed her teeth and took out her little pigtails. Jessica was more than willing to get into her little bed, her froggy clutched tightly at her side while Sookie tucked her in.

"Do you want a story?" Sookie asked while digging into a small bag of toys she'd packed.

"Fishes!" Jessica snuggled her frog.

Sookie grabbed the copy of One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish from the bag and sat down next to the air mattress. She had just found a comfortable position to sit in when Jessica surprised her and Eric both by speaking up.

"Eric read, please?" Jessica's eyes were bigger than usual. Flirt.

Sookie looked back at Eric who seemed slightly, but adorably, startled by Jessica's request. Without even taking the book from Sookie's hands, he began to recite the story. He'd read it hundreds of times to Claude over the last six years. Sookie watched as Eric not only recited the story, but did it in an animated fashion that had Jessica completely spellbound. Watching Eric interact with her daughter tugged at Sookie's heart and if it weren't for the fact that he had a child of his own, she might have thought it was all just an act designed to get in her pants again.

By the time the story was done, it was obvious Eric had a new fan in Jessica. She even held her little arms up for a hug from Eric before turning to her mother. Sookie went through their usual bedtime routine of butterfly kisses and prayers before tucking Jessica in and letting Eric help her up off the floor.

"You are amazing," Sookie whispered to him as they walked out onto the deck, hand in hand.

"I have some practice, you know," Eric winked at her, then leaned down to kiss her.

"I know, but I still appreciate that it matters to you. We both come with baggage and it's a lot to accept. It means a lot to me that you make an effort and that you're determined for this to work." Sookie leaned against him near the railing of the boat.

"I am. And just so we're clear, I'm pretty crazy about you, Sookie Stackhouse. I want to feel that way about your daughter, too." Eric kissed the side of her head.

"Likewise, Mr. Northman," Sookie tilted her head back and kissed him sweetly, sinking into the gentle warmth of his arms closing around back.

**o.O.o.O.o**

Sookie stood nervously on the boat with Jessica perched at the top of the slide, ready to go down. Eric was waiting in the water below to catch Jessica but that didn't stop Sookie's heart from thudding in her chest. Jess was strapped into a life preserver since she couldn't swim yet, much less hold her breath underwater. Claude was kicking away with inflatable water wings on his arms to make sure he stayed afloat. Pam and Sophie-Anne were sunning themselves up on the top deck of the boat. Quinn and Peter were in the water with Eric and Claude.

"I promise I'll catch her, Sookie," Eric called up from the water.

"I can doooooo it!" Jessica looked up at her mother with fierce determination in her little face.

After a few more seconds of total fear, Sookie said a silent prayer and gave Jessica a gentle push. It was amazing how quickly Jessica went down the slide and the next thing anyone knew, she was falling very fast toward the dark water of the lake. Eric held his arms up and caught Jessica easily, making sure she didn't go any deeper in the water than her chin. Sookie breathed a sigh of relief and thanked God her knees hadn't gone out like she thought they might.

"Again!" Jessica squealed and clapped her hands.

"My turn!" Claude argued and started toward the boat.

"No, me!" Jessica argued, staring directly at Eric.

"Jessica, it's Claude's turn. Then you can go again." Sookie said from her spot up on the boat.

"I think it's Sookie's turn," Eric wiggled his eyebrows.

"I don't think so. Sookie's had enough excitement for one day," Sookie put her hand over her heart like she thought it might slow the wild thumping.

"Oh, come on, Sookie, it's just a six foot drop!" Quinn said as he swam toward the ladder to help Claude onto the boat.

"Exactly! No thanks!" Sookie shook her head.

"Chicken!" Peter taunted, which started three grown men (and eventually two small children) making chicken noises.

It was stupid, she knew it, to be so easily influenced by a couple of fools and two kids, into doing something she didn't really want to do. But then she thought about how silly she was being. It was just water and she wouldn't even notice the drop. It would all happen so quickly and if her _two-year-old_ could do it, then she could too.

"Fine, fine! You win!" Sookie pouted and climbed up onto the slide.

"Want me to catch you?" Eric teased.

"You're going to be catching a night on the hide-a-bed with Claude if you're not careful," Sookie threatened Eric, who just laughed while handing Jessica over to Peter.

"You can do it, Mommy!" Jessica shouted.

Again, Sookie closed her eyes and said another round of prayers. This wasn't the scariest thing she'd ever done, as was evidence by the toddler floating in the water below and the beautiful man who was waiting to catch her when she fell. That was when it struck her...from the time they'd met, Eric had been taking one gamble after another on her. He hadn't been entirely wrong when he'd suggested Sookie would rather be home with a good book than getting drunk and felt up in a dark, loud nightclub. He had been the one to try and get her to stay. He had been the one to confess his feelings first and that couldn't have been easy for him considering the ugliness of his divorce. He had been the one to pursue her and had suggested the _four_ of them spend more time together.

When Sookie added it all up, there was only one conclusion she could reach: she was in love with Eric. With that knowledge firmly in her mind and setting her heart into an even more thunderous rhythm, she let go of the railings and felt herself falling. She plunged into the water and two strong hands reached down to pull her back to the surface.

_That's the way it'll always be with him if I let it_, she thought to herself as sunshine fell warm on her face and Eric wrapped his arms around her.

"I told you I'd catch you," Eric grinned at her while Jessica slapped her hands on the water nearby.

Sookie just smiled in return. She was tempted to wrap her legs around him but instead went to retrieve Jessica so Claude could take his turn on the slide. They played and splashed around in the water with Jessica begging for Eric to throw her up in the air over and over again after he did it the first time. It seemed whatever aversion she had to him was officially a thing of the past.

After the kids were sufficiently tired out from swimming, Sookie and Eric got them dried off and dressed in regular clothes. It didn't take long for both Jessica and Claude to fall asleep on Jessica's air mattress while watching a video. It was a tight fit but Eric managed to squeeze himself into the small shower stall with Sookie. It took some careful maneuvering, but Eric discovered just how flexible Sookie could be when necessary.

His hand covered her mouth to muffle the noises she made while he pounded against her. He bit her neck gently when he came to keep himself from making too much noise. Getting cleaned up afterward was easier said than done but they managed. Once they were dressed they checked on the kids and ended up falling asleep together on the sofa. They weren't asleep for long when Pam and Quinn came in, arguing like always.

"You grabbed his cock, Pam! I saw it!" Quinn shouted, oblivious to the sleeping children on the floor.

"Like you haven't been talking to Sophie's tits since the minute we got here?" Pam shouted right back.

"Hey! There are kids in the room!" Eric glared at them both, peeking up from his resting place under Sookie.

Pam simply huffed and marched toward the bedroom in the back with Quinn quickly following behind her to finish the argument. Sookie snuggled against Eric and threw one of her legs over both of his. Her cheek rubbed against his chest while she adjusted her positioning just a little bit.

"If Jess repeats any of that, I'm taking a serrated knife to every pair of pumps Pam brought with her," Sookie threatened quietly, making Eric chuckle softly.

"I doubt they heard it," Eric kissed the top of her head.

"I hope not," Sookie sighed and stretched out a little before shifting again and straddling Eric's lap. "I was thinking about something."

"What were you thinking?" Eric rested his hands on her hips.

"It was never a problem before we got married!" Pam came storming out of the bedroom, once again with Quinn right behind her. "Before we got married you didn't care who I fucked around with! We had a threesome on our honeymoon, remember?"

"Seriously, guys?" Sookie turned as much as she could, but she was ignored.

"We agreed to it, Pam. Don't pretend like I forced it on you," Quinn argued.

"Exactly my point so why are you pissed off now?" Pam stared him down, never mind that he was well over a foot taller than her.

"Uh, guy, we _really_ don't need to be hearing this," Sookie said as she climbed off Eric's lap, much to his dismay.

"Eric, would you be pissed at Sookie if she spent the weekend grabbing Peter's junk every chance she got?" Quinn asked without looking over in their direction.

"Um, why are we in this?" Sookie looked to Eric.

"Don't go bringing Eric and Sookie into our problems," Pam folded her arms over chest and the arguing continued.

Thankfully they took it back to the bedroom where they started shouting again but the sounds were muffled enough that it was hard to tell what they were saying to each other. Sookie sat on the edge of the couch, her eyes trained on Jessica. Eric sat up behind her and rubbed her shoulders.

"They fight like that all the time. I honestly have no idea why they ever got married," Eric kissed the back of Sookie's neck.

"I want to make a deal," Sookie leaned back against Eric's chest.

"What kind of deal?"

"I want us to promise each other that we will never fight like that in front of our kids," Sookie turned her head toward Eric as much as she could.

"I can live with that," Eric nodded, then leaned down to seal the deal with a kiss.

The two of them had just snuggled in again on the couch when the shouting stopped and a rhythmic pounding up against the door started in its place, quickly followed my growls and screams.

"You've got to be kidding me," Sookie groaned while Eric covered her head with a pillow.

**o.O.o.O.o**

Jessica sat in Sookie's lap with her eyes wide and her hands covering her ears while they watched the fireworks go off overhead. The year before, Jessica had been too little and was sound asleep by the time fireworks had started going off. This year she was wired on sugar and intent on staying awake as long as Claude did. The two of them had become fast friends and got along very well, which made things much easier for everyone.

"Look, Mama!" Jessica pointed up at the sky when a heart-shaped firework filled the sky. "Pretty!"

"Yes, it's very pretty," Sookie agreed and smiled over at Eric.

Jessica jumped with the next explosion, but smiled brightly when blue and green dots spread out. Claude stood with his head tilted back, quietly watching the display. Sophie and Peter were sitting together on one of the padded benches and it was anyone's guess where Pam and Quinn were. Sookie assumed they were still making up down in their bedroom.

She looked over at Eric and wondered what it would be like if she got in a fight with him. So far, things had been rather peaceful but she knew it was only a matter of time before they would argue about something. Fighting in relationships was inevitable, which was part of the reason she had proposed they never fight in front of the kids. She didn't ever want them to feel like it was their job to referee, or like it was their fault she and Eric were fighting.

Jessica grabbed her mother's hands and put them on her ears when the finale of the display got super loud, but continued to watch the rest of the display. When it was all over, Jessica was clapping wildly and wanting more. Peter and Sophie excused themselves to go to bed with a reminder they would be returning to the marina after breakfast in the morning.

Eric went down to the main deck to see where Quinn and Pam were and if they were still at it. The kids needed to settle down and start getting ready for bed but Sookie wasn't about to take them down there if Pam and Quinn were still having loud and rowdy sex a few rooms over. While she was waiting for Eric to come back she played Simon Says with the kids. Jessica didn't quite get the concept of the game yet, but she figured any last minute physical activity to burn off some of the energy the kids had couldn't be a bad thing.

Eric came back a little while later looking slightly traumatized, but assured Sookie it was safe to bring the kids down to get them ready for bed. A half hour later the kids were in their pajamas and watching the Disney channel while Eric was checking his email at the small dining room table and Sookie was painting her toe nails. Not a peep had been heard from Pam and Quinn's room.

When Eric was finished with his email, he parked himself on the couch next to Sookie and carefully pulled her feet into his lap. His hands ran up and down her calves while she wiggled her perfectly polished cherry red toes at him.

"So, earlier you were going to tell me something," Eric started massaging Sookie's left foot.

"Yes, I was," Sookie closed her eyes with a content smile on her face.

"Care to share with the rest of the class?" he asked while applying a little extra pressure to a spot that made Sookie groan and squirm at the same time.

"Mama!" Jessica called out with impeccable timing.

"What's wrong, baby?" Sookie asked from her spot on the couch.

"My tummy hurts," Jessica announced, then promptly threw up.


End file.
